The insane lengths Nike went to for Zion's new shoes

Nike were rumoured to have lost millions when Zion Williamson’s shoes exploded in a marquee college basketball matchup in February.

The all-but certain number one NBA draft pick missed six games with a knee injury as a result of the shoe falling apart.

So when he returned to the court earlier this week, the massive sporting company was taking no chances.

A couple of changes were made for Williamson – first, he switched from PG 2.5s to the Kyrie 4.

Then, according to USA Today and ESPN, Nike sent a crack team to Durham to measure Willamson’s feet, with the goal of designing a completely customised fit for the burgeoning star.

The team then went to China, to personally oversee the actual production of the shoes.

Fortunately for Nike, their efforts paid off.

Williamson dominated in his return to the court, shooting perfectly from the field on his way to 29 points in a big win over Syracuse on March 15.

Roasting left in the past

Nike copped an absolute hiding in the wake of Williamson’s shoe blowout in a sold-out game against North Carolina.

The timing couldn’t have been worse, with the likes of former US President Barack Obama in attendance, Williamson’s injury in the first minute of the game soured the occasion.

Many fans pointed out that Nike, considered to be the frontrunners to secure an exclusive and lucrative shoe deal with Williamson once he joins the NBA, could have trouble signing him after the incident.

The superstar treatment for his next pair of kicks might have gone some ways toward fixing the situation for Nike.