Not even Zion Williamson's shoe falling apart on national TV could sway hoopers from the Swoosh ... so says Dahntay Jones, who tells TMZ Sports Nike will face ZERO backlash for the incident.
As we previously reported ... Nike execs held an emergency meeting after the most popular college basketball player had his PG 2.5 sneaker give out just 30 seconds into the Duke/UNC game.
But, Jones -- who played at Duke from 2001-03 -- says all the flippin' out is unnecessary, 'cause there's no way athletes will turn their backs on Nike over a "freak accident."
"Nike's been the best in shoes for years, especially basketball shoes," Jones says.
DJ also weighs in on whether Z-Dub should call it a season and start prepping for the draft.
We also spoke to Kenny Smith -- who previously told us Zion needs to sharpen his iron and continue to play (prior to Wednesday's injury).
Check out if he's changed his mind.