Literally hundreds of sneakers—if not more—drop in any given year these days. It's no easy feat to discern which were the best of the best, but here we are. With endless debate and staff members fighting tooth and nail over which release deserved to be on such a year-end list, the Complex Sneakers team finally came to a consensus. We pored over which drops should be included from a variety of factors such as cultural significance, performance standards, limited fanfare, and just straight up dopeness.
you're wondering why some of these differ from our midyear list, it's because we sat down with a group of editors and writers to hash every one of these out, and to be clear, no retros of any O.G. colorway were included to make this fair. From super dope collabs to new signature sneakers, from old school classics to new age runners, here are The 25 Best Sneakers of 2014.
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Literally hundreds of sneakers—if not more—drop in any given year these days. It's no easy feat to discern which were the best of the best, but here we are. With endless debate and staff members fighting tooth and nail over which release deserved to be on such a year-end list, the Complex Sneakers team finally came to a consensus. We pored over which drops should be included from a variety of factors such as cultural significance, performance standards, limited fanfare, and just straight up dopeness.
you're wondering why some of these differ from our midyear list, it's because we sat down with a group of editors and writers to hash every one of these out, and to be clear, no retros of any O.G. colorway were included to make this fair. From super dope collabs to new signature sneakers, from old school classics to new age runners, here are The 25 Best Sneakers of 2014.
25.Nike Dunk SB High “Diamond”
Released: February
Even though it’s been almost a decade since Diamond Supply Co.’s Nick Tershay and Nike SB released the “Tiffany” Dunks, the sneaker’s still up there as one of the most coveted drops. The staying power of that Tiffany hue blended with black croc paneling was evidenced earlier this year when the two brands connected to bring back the sneaker. While this time around it was offered in high-top form and nicknamed the “Diamond” Dunk, the sneaker didn’t miss a beat despite nearly a decade since it first stepped onto the scene. But bigger than the sneaker itself was that it set the tone for what ‘heads could expect for the rest of the year: a high-top retro release trend from Nike SB. — John Marcelo
24.Nike Air Huarache “Triple Black”
Released: June
Out of all the sneakers on this list, the all-black Nike Air Huarache was a bigger hit overseas than it was in the U.S. In fact, you might be able to find a few pairs at the local store, while people lined up in droves in the UK for the same sneaker. What it failed to bring in terms of hype, it executed greatly on introducing the lightweight runner to a new audience that started to ease sneakers into their #menswear outfits. But that's not why this Huarache should be celebrated: It's just a good sneaker. “Murdered out” sneakers are undoubtedly a trend right now, but this one didn't feel like it was pandering to something that might be gone tomorrow. They were just a $100 sneaker that could be worn everyday, but they had more authentic feel to them. We mean, how can you beat a pair of monochrome Huaraches? — Matt Welty
23.Pharrell x adidas Stan Smith “Solids Pack”
Released: September
This was a monumental release for adidas Originals. After the highly-publicized signings of Kanye West, Pharrell Williams, and Nigo, it was Skateboard P’s line that first launched from the trio. The “Solids” pack and all its monochromatic goodness consisted of three colorways of the Stan Smith—black, blue, and red. The variations were far different than the crisp white pair that the vintage tennis sneaker has been known for, but the bold colors and footbed graphics matched Pharrell’s persona and style perfectly. It’s this free creative reign that sets a precedent for future Pharrell x adidas lineups and even the one from Kanye West. — John Marcelo
22.J. Crew x New Balance 998 “Independence Day”
Released: July
J. Crew and New Balance have been working together on special make-ups for a few seasons now, but 2014 marked the year that J. Crew started adopting certain marketing practices more in line with sneaker culture. Nicknames for colorways? Limited quantities? On-site releases at its specialty Liquor Store in TriBeCa? The most surprising thing about the Independence Day 998s was their relatively quick sellout, indicating that the hottest sneakers weren't just the ones at core footwear shops like Foot Locker and Finish Line. It signified the sneaker collaboration as more than an organic meeting of the minds, it was now a full-blown marketing technique… and one that worked well. — Jian DeLeon
21.Nike Vapor Tour 9 “Black/Cement”
Released: November
The collaboration between NikeCourt and Jordan Brand resulted in one of the most coveted sneakers that no one ever really saw coming. The Roger Federer x Michael Jordan pairing was an unlikely match, but one that made complete sense. Not only did both men dominate their respective courts, but the two also shared a connection with Nike designer Tinker Hatfield, who designed Federer’s signature Zoom Vapor 9 Tour and, obviously, a majority of the Air Jordan line. Initially, it was strange to see “Black/Cement” III elements on another sneaker, let alone a performance tennis model, but you have to give it up to Nike for executing the mashup perfectly. Plus, they went with “Nike Air" on the heel. With Jordan Brand placing the Air Jordan III back into the sneaker archives, this was probably sneakerheads’ last shot, at least for now, at anything related to the III. — John Marcelo
20.adidas SL Loop Runner
Released: June
There were a lot of lightweight adidas runners that have come out over the past 12 months, and it might caused the SL Loop to get lost in the mix a bit. But taking its design from the SL '72, an adidas sneaker with serious history, made the Loop feel like the brand was headed in the right direction. There was also a surprising collaboration with Wish ATL, which placed $2 bills all over the sneaker's upper. For a few months after that, the Loop would kind of remain dormant - even going on sale at several retailers. Then, once again, the Kanye effect happened, and the newly signed adidas designer took a liking to the minimal sneaker. And just like that, it has life again and has been transformed into a mid-cut Moc, too. — Matt Welty
19.Nike Free Orbit II SP
Released: April
Typically anything associated with Nike Air Yeezy II designer Nathan VanHook gets instant approval from sneakerheads, but the Free Orbit II SP stood on its own merits, and rightfully so. If the shoe looks familiar it's because it's an updated version of 2011's Lunar Orbit with cues taken from the Lunar Terra Arktos, another VanHook project. The slip-on sits on Free 5.0 tooling and the geometric studded uppers gave these a high-end appeal that were a welcome change among a sea of lifestyle sneakers. The fact that they were also only available at select NSW stockists made them even harder to get. — Daniel So
18.Nike Free Mercurial Flyknit HTM
Released: June
It's hard to shake the memory of the World Cup in Brazil this year, and that's just not talking about the U.S. Men's National Team and Tim Howard. Nike had big plans for the soccer tournament. In its usual fashion, this just didn't crossover to traditional soccer boots or indoor shoes. The tourney's game-winning goal may have been scored off the foot of Nike's first-ever Flyknit boot, but the real takeaway was turning the Mercurial into a weird Free mashup, and, of course, the folks behind it were Hiroshi Fujiwara, Tinker Hatfield, and Mark Parker. At first glance, the Free Mercurial Superfly is very challenging to wear. It's a high-cut runner with a sock-like upper. It might look difficult to wear with pants, but people have figured it out and that's half the fun of the silhouette. More importantly, it showed that Nike was serious on taking over the soccer market - even if it one was super-limited sneaker at a time. — Matt Welty
17.A Bathing Ape x Reebok Instapump Fury
Released: August
We're still doing BAPE, huh? To be honest, this collaboration should have been a disaster—an overused trope (BAPE camo) laid atop a collaborated-to-death silhouette (there were at least 30 Pump Furys released just this year). But the combination of a niche Japanese brand and an equally niche silhouette turned out to be perfect. The Pump Fury may have never gained much traction in the States, but its futuristic look (still, 20 years on) fits right in to the menswear world—think Rick Owens and Raf Simons—and the BAPE overlays just gave the shoe an even more exotic feel. Plus, with the Pump Fury having been introed in 1994 and BAPE having debuted in 1993, this felt more like the re-release of a long-forgotten collab than something totally new. It was a retro of something that never was, something we feel Nigo would approve of. We did. — Russ Bengtson
16.Nike Zoom Hypercross
Released: September
Nike designer Nathan VanHook is famed for his work on the Air Yeezy II, but it's not the only thing in his portfolio. This year saw him make the transition into designing training footwear for the brand, and Zoom Hypercross is his best piece of work so far. Taking advantage of Hexagonal Zoom Air, Nike's latest and greatest cushioning system also seen on the LeBron 12, the Hypercross just looked like a badass sneaker. And it was a low-cut, too, dispelling the myth that all cross trainers are big and bulky. Coupled with bright but not gaudy colorways, the Hypercross is much more than just another gym shoe and its story hasn't been fully told yet. It will be exciting to see what 2015 holds for the silhouette. — Matt Welty
15.Fragment Design x Air Jordan 1
Released: December
Hiroshi Fujiwara, the brains behind creative outlet Fragment Design and one-third of the “HTM” design collective, is practically employed by Nike what with the sheer number of collaborations he's done with the brand alone. But, perhaps, Fragment's greatest coup this year will be its reworking of the Air Jordan 1 O.G. As Fujiwara is wont to do, he keeps the design palate simple but effectively clean with sport royal accents at the heel and ankle collars and black through the toe and forefoot. Coupled with the fact that they're confirmed to be the first model in Jordan Brand's “remastered” line of retros, these are hands down the best Jordan 1 drop of the year. — Daniel So
14.adidas Tubular Runner
Released: November
Adidas' Tubular technology is nothing new. It's been around since the '90s and was first inspired by car tires. But it's safe to say that the Qasa Racer brought a mainstream, or at least popular, interest in this doughnut-like sole. The Qasa is pricey, though, and most people don't like paying extreme resale prices at retail. 2014 saw the adidas Tubular, a mid-cut runner designed by Nic Galway, gain popularity because of its $110 retail price and its place between high-end and athletic sneakers. The Tubular was also there to show that adidas wasn't joking with its direction this year, either, and carved out a nice lane for the brand's Originals line. It's a super wearable sneaker that nodded its cap to adidas' past but wasn't confined by it. — Matt Welty
13.Riccardo Tisci x Nike Air Force 1 Mid
Released: March
Unbeknownst to most, Givenchy Creative Director Riccardo Tisci has been a lowkey fan of Nike Air Force 1s for quite some time, rocking them throughout his childhood and career. So when the designer was given a chance to collaborate on his very own, the news was met with unheralded fan fare early this year. It marked an important milestone for Nike as no other high-fashion designer has collaborated with the brand on such a magnitude. Tisci's AF1 collection featured premium leathers in several different cuts including a knee-high boot that's never been done before, but the mids were collectively our favorite. Even with more than a handful of outlets receiving these, the collection was highly sought after and sold out quickly, proving that the intersection of high-fashion and sneaker culture is already happening. — Daniel So
12.Nike LeBron 12
Released: November
LeBron's latest and greatest signature sneaker, the 12, is a culmination of all the best elements from his previous shoes. It's only right that since the King's return to his roots in Cleveland, he's brought with him a wealth of knowledge and experience from his championship-winning stint in Miami, and this is exactly what the LeBron 12 represents. By incorporating Hyperfuse, Foamposite, Flywire, engineered mesh, and Zoom Air technologies all in one, the 12 simply became LeBron's best-performing signature sneaker ever. Coupled with the fact that the initial drop included a bunch of dope and limited colorways, the 12 was one of the standout basketball sneakers of 2014. — Daniel So
11.Lance Mountain x Nike Air Jordan 1 SB
Released: June
For those who are still unfamiliar, Lance Mountain was one of the original members of the Bones Brigade, the Powell Peralta skate team of the mid- to late '80s who basically did for skateboarding what the Dream Team did for basketball. Through videos like “The Search For Animal Chin,” they spread their skateboard gospel worldwide—their style as well. Before filming that particular video, the team had come up on a huge stash of original Air Jordans. There was a glut of them after secondary production, and the durable leather hightops were perfect for skaters. Mountain wore a mismatched pair for much of the video—one black/royal, one white/carolina—which is the detail Nike SB mined for their collaboration with Jordan. The Lance Mountains released as a mismatched pair, black/royal and black/red this time, with a uniform coating of either black or white. The idea was, once skated in, they'd slowly emerge. Of course some couldn't wait (and couldn't skate), so they used sandpaper or acetone to strip off the coating, or portions thereof. And by getting one of each pair, it was possible to assemble matched pairs of black/royal and black/red Jordan 1 SBs. But the mismatch is the point, and should be respected as such. Pay homage. — Russ Bengtson
10.Jordan Future
Released: March
When we introduced the Jordan Future in January, we noted it represented Jordan Brand's first foray into a pure play lifestyle shoe. Combining a woven upper with the familiar XI sole married modern minimal tastes with the Jumpan's on-court legacy. It's a simple chukka that menswear dudes in cuffed chinos and streetwear heads in jogger pants could equally rock. The first models became a non-retro release that generated as much hype as a retro, partly thanks to a super limited, retail-only sales strategy. While some people claim the shoe's been done to death, models like the Jordan Future Premium prove that the silhouette is here to stay—and will only get better with age. — Jian DeLeon
9.Supreme x Nike Air Force 1
Released: October
Two decades is a hell of a long time to be in business, especially in New York City. Supreme rang in their 20th anniversary with some solid heat and commemorative items (sup, Taxi Driver tee?), but the Air Force 1 High collab really felt like James Jebbia and crew had come full circle. 2012's canvas AF1 Low felt more like a test run in comparison to the mixed material upper on the high, integrating a pebbled leather swoosh and patent leather heel accent with a huge “94” behind the Swoosh. The snake continued to eat itself when Supreme announced these kicks wouldn't be available at its Lafayette St. location, the ultimate irony considering it's truly a “New York” sneaker. — Jian DeLeon
8.Kobe 9 Elite High
Released: February
It was possible to see the Kobe 9 Elite coming. After four straight models of going lower and lower and lighter and lighter, Kobe Bryant and designer Eric Avar were reaching the end of that particular vein. It was time to mine elsewhere. And, Kobe being Kobe, the place they were going to go was the least expected—a high hightop like none other. There was a lot of technology, of course, from carbon plates to a proprioceptive upper to Kobe mainstays Flywire and Lunarlon—but it was the Flyknit upper, the first time the tech had been used in a basketball shoe—that really drew the eye. It was like nothing that had ever been designed before, which made it perfect for Kobe. And if it was hard to wear as a street shoe, what of it? It played wonderfully, and for those daring enough to wear them off the court, it stood out like nothing else. — Russ Bengtson
7.Concepts x adidas Stan Smith
Released: October
In a year when collaborations threatened to become the most prevalent sort of sneaker around, it took an awful lot to make one stand out. And no one made their collaborations stand out more than Concepts, the Cambridge, Mass. boutique which expanded to a NYC permanent pop-up location this year. Their finest work by far was their take on the Stan Smith, an engineered mesh, inner-bootied re-invention that—even in the Year of the Stan Smith—shed new light on the venerable design. The purple and green accents added a traditional Wimbledon touch, but the overall result was a shoe even more cozy and wearable than even adidas' own Primeknit Stan. If adidas doesn't turn out their own, more basic versions of this updated silhouette, they're crazy. Mustache optional. — Russ Bengtson
6.Y-3 Qasa Racer
Released: February
While the Qasa High may have taken the top crown in 2013 as far as Y-3 is concerned, its Qasa Racer was a welcome newcomer this year, proving that adidas' plan to dominate the high-end market was taking shape. Even without the Kanye co-sign, the low-top cut make these a little easier to wear with everyday gear and sit on the familiar tubular sole the silhouette has become known for. And the roll cage-esque upper really separates these from your typical runner, propelling athletic footwear into the future. — Daniel So
5.Nike Air Yeezy 2 “Red October”
Released: February
What’s there to say about the “Red October” that hasn’t already been said at this point? After countless rumors in 2013, including a possible October release—gee, I wonder why—sneakerheads began to question if the all-red Yeezys were ever going to see the light of day. After Kanye West’s falling-out with Nike, which obviously led to a deal with adidas last November, the possibility of a launch looked slim. That is, until February 9, 2014, at exactly 1 p.m. EST. To everyone’s surprise, Nike randomly released the sneakers via its Twitter Link-Only procedure with no prior warning. It was a move that angered sneakerheads, but an appropriate one to a roller-coaster journey. And to no one’s surprise, the sneaker now sells for upwards of $3K. — John Marcelo
4.adidas ZX Flux
Released: February
Every year, for the past few at least, there's been an increased interest in the retro runner. Brands have been digging up models that built their legacies in the '80s and '90s. For adidas, that means the ZX 8000, a sneaker deisgned by Jacques Chassaing and Markus Thaler to be the ultimate running sneaker. With the minimalist ethos running strong within the same segment of consumers, much in large thanks to the Nike Roshe Run, adidas came strong with the ZX Flux: a seamless version of the 8000. The sneakers non-busy upper allowed to take on bright and crazy prints and created something refreshing at a time when the Roshe was getting tired. A few months later, adidas launched the #mizxflux app, which allowed users to put almost any image on the ZX Flux. The greatest thing about the ZX Flux, though, was its shape. A lot of runner fanatics complain about the bastardazation of the toe box's slope. The Flux had none of that. And they're $90. — Matt Welty
3.Air Jordan XX9
Released: September
The release of a new Air Jordan has always been an event, and if interest has waned somewhat since the days of Spike and Mike, it hasn't waned by much. Last year's shrouded Air Jordan XX8 was a polarizing silhouette—as the best of them traditionally have been—a Tinker Hatfield designed very hightop sitting on top of Jordan's finest performance innovation in years, the Zoom Air assisted Flight Plate. The Air Jordan XX9, while a far more traditional shape, is even more futuristic. With its one-piece woven upper it's perhaps the most comfortable Air Jordan ever—no break-in required—as well as the most versatile stylistically, as the weave can be adjusted to take on any color or pattern. A baby blue argyle pair for the University of North Carolina? A simple all-black pair? Anything is possible. And with an updated take on Flight Plate underneath, it's an eminently playable shoe as well. Everything a new Air Jordan should be. — Russ Bengtson
2.Kobe 9 Low HTM
Released: April
There's been a continual talk of the intersection of fashion and sneakers. When this occurs, it's usually based around designers working with footwear brands. Nike, as it always does, flipped the script when it introduced the Kobe 9 HTM Lows. It only released them, initially at least, in small numbers in Milan. It turns out that these pairs - designed by the trio of Hiroshi Fujiwara, Tinker Hatfield, and Mark Parker - would be the best Kobe sneakers of the year, too. The silhouette was chopped down and it used multicolored Flyknit material. Beyond that, the white pair had a gum sole. That's everything that someone who loves basketball, how they look, and Nike's innovative direction could ask for. If they were lucky, they scored a pair at NikeLab when they re-released. — Matt Welty
1.adidas Pure Boost
Released: May
To say adidas was desperate for a hit in 2014 might be an understatement. The perception of the brand, at least to those who are fanatic about sneakers, is that the German company was a distant second best to Nike. That would all change when adidas released the Pure Boost, a streamlined use of the brand's new cushioning that had been previously used on more serious running sneakers. It's not that you couldn't run in the Pure Boost, it's just that it looked better on the streets - or even on the basketball court as demonstrated by Kanye West. Shortly after its launch, heralded adidas collaborator Yohji Yamamoto gave the Pure Boost a spin, renaming it the Yohji Boost and adding premium details such as suede and waxed laces. For those who couldn't get their hands on the limited Yamamoto-designed version, the regular Pure Boost retailed at just $120. It was affordable, widely available, and stylish. That's a powerful combination. Bigger than that, it landed adidas back in the conversation with Nike - not only amongst those who want to find the gap between luxury and general release, but anyone who wanted something clean laced up on their feet — Matt Welty