"The Game" Triple H goes Complex Sneaker Shopping ahead of WrestleMania XL

54-year-old Paul Levesque, better known by his ring name Triple H (or Hunter Hearst Helmsley), has since stepped away from in-ring competition, where he is now the current Chief Content Officer (COO) and Head of Creative for the WWE.

Despite a brief stint with then-rival WCW (World Championship Wrestling), "The Game" has largely been a WWE lifer and one of the company's most accomplished superstars, with 14 illustrious world title reigns to his name. The WWE is gearing up for their annual marquee show of shows this weekend; WrestleMania XL to take place at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, PA.

But before the company sets off for the grandest stage of them all, Triple H joined Complex's Joe La Puma at Laced Dreams in Stamford, CT, on the most recent edition of Sneaker Shopping.

To begin the sneaker convo, La Puma brought up Levesque being a two sport athlete growing up, as he played baseball and basketball. La Puma asked the Levesque what shoes he was hooping in as a young "King of Kings", to which he replied:

"You know... I'm old (laughs). For me, the cloth All-Star's [Converse] were started. I'm old enough to remember sort of where the all-leather high tops were first starting... You know, Larry Bird... Look at where I grew up, Nashua, New Hampshire, the Celtics were the thing. And, I grew up in a great era. I would watch Bird and Robert Parrish and Kevin McHale, all those guys. It was a magical time and those were the shoes. "

- Triple H via Complex Sneaker Shopping

La Puma mentioned HHH rocking the Nike Blazer '77 Vintage to go with his business-savvy look, but its not everyday you'll catch the Cerebral Assassin mixing both worlds, as he said:

"Look, my kids got me these, so I hoped when I walked in here, you'd think they were cool. Cuz I don't know. I'm in suits ninety percent of the time, just for work-wise. But, the sneaker culture has hit that world as well. It's just a tougher transition for us to go from suit and dress shoes to a suit with sneakers on. But, that's the thing now... I gotta up my game! "

- Triple H

The Game was a staple of a different time in wrestling, as one of the top stars during the WWE's Attitude Era and Ruthless Aggression Era. HHH recalls wrestlers wanting practicality, function, and quick storage in and out of their baggage carried around 300 or so days a year during a busy wrestling schedule. However, in recent years, many modern, younger pro wrestling stars have implemented their love for sneakers as an important component of their in-ring personas and gear. Levesque had this to say about the two worlds coming together:

"I love it. You know, if you're the youth of the world watching the show, how do you connect with our Superstars? And that's just another connection point. That makes them cool and puts them on another plane of being a Superstar... I'm old school, I'm professional, I like wrestling boots, right? But, they've transitioned now to a lot of guys like wearing sneakers in the ring. They like the comfort of it, but they also like that flexin'. They like going out there and have that athletic ability, but have them in something stylish. It's a big thing in the locker room too."

- Triple H

La Puma brought up a very intriguing point about a potential signature deal between Jordan Brand and a WWE Superstar, or a group of Superstars for that matter. This is how The Game responded to the question:

"When you look at our world... I think that our performers affect that culture just as much as well. If you go to a game, almost any sport, you'll hear our entrance themes playing in that stadium or that arena. The sayings and the chants and the catchphrases that our talent use, you can't go to a game without people "Wooin" like Flair [Ric]. I see athletes doing the Roman Reigns "One" all the time. You know, I think the "Yeet!" thing that Jey [Uso] has brought back, it all affects culture in a big way. If someone doesn't do the signature line with some of our talent... I think they're missing the boat on something that can be very impactful towards their business."

- Triple H

Levesque came out of Laced Dreams with a pretty decent sneaker haul. Purchasing eight sets of sneakers, the COO of the WWE took home such models as the Air Jordan 4 in various colorways, the Air Jordan 1 High "Black White 2.0", Nike Zoom Blazer Mid "Iron Grey", and the Travis Scott x Air Jordan 1 Low "Black Phantom". HHH's final cashout tab came to a total of $4472 and some change. Safe to say, The Game knows his game when it comes to shoes.

Who knows? Maybe Triple H rocks a set of these bad boys in an on-screen appearance at WrestleMania XL. You'll just have to tune in to the two-night extravaganza to find out!