Miami Hurricanes’ shoe snafu costs them Nijel Pack for key stretch of Final Four

This offseason, the Miami Hurricanes responded to their surprise Elite 8 run by doubling down on their current core, dipping into the NIL waters to get Head Coach Jim Larrañaga some reinforcements.

Chief among them was Nijel Pack, a dynamic guard who’d previously starred for the Kansas State Wildcats. Could’ve made a pretty interesting storyline if K-State had advanced past FAU, and the ‘Canes had … you know what, not worth worrying about.

Clearly, there are more pressing matters afoot.

Despite being blown out early in the second half, Miami was able to recover in their Final Four battle against the UConn Huskies, closing a 19-point lead all the way down to eight.

In other words, they really could’ve used Pack. Unfortunately, his shoe busted midway through the second half, and a fleet of scrambling team managers couldn’t seem to find an additional pair that fit, no matter how many times they scuttled across the sidelines.

Miami Hurricanes star Nijel Pack lost his shoe vs UConn in the Final Four

“Hopefully, the slipper still fits,” quipped Jim Nantz, at the exact perfect time.

Despite not having quite the same star power and heft behind it, this moment might end up having the same level of negative effects as the Zion Williamson Nike shoe bust on national television against the North Carolina Tar Heels.

No, Pack isn’t Zion. But that wasn’t the Final Four, either. And the Duke/Zion moment was accompanied mostly by gasps. Was he hurt? Would he return? Would Nike bounce back? This Final Four disaster was greeted mostly by laughs, which might be worse.

Let’s all give it up for nervous shoe guy! Unfortunately, the Huskies regained their confidence after seeing their lead reach single digits, and Pack and his frazzled manager friends had probably hustled for naught.

It’s gotta be the shoes.