What to Know About the Air Jordan 1 – Footwear News

Nearly 40 years ago, a 21-year-old NBA rookie took the first steps to help reshape a company now worth more than $150 billion and create an entire sneaker-centric culture.

On November 17, 1984, Michael Jordan took to the court wearing Nike Air Jordan 1 sneakers for the first time. It was only the 11th game of his career, and he had already broken the mold by not only getting a pair of sneakers of his own, but a contract that surpassed even that of the NBA’s oldest stars. Granting such an honor to such a young player, no matter how flashy and gravity-defying, represented a huge risk for Nike, which at the time was a relatively small player in the sportswear industry.

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By the time Jordan’s Rookie of the Year season was over, his shoes had generated millions of dollars in sales for Nike while solidifying star power that would only continue to grow. Purchasing a pair of Air Jordan 1s marked the first opportunity to “be like Mike,” a desire that remains steadfast to this day and was designed to help make Nike one of the most valuable brands in the world and transform sneakers from functional, Purpose-driven footwear turned collectibles are considered works of art not only for their cultural value, but also for their potential investment value.

With over 1,000 different versions of the sneaker released to date, not to mention many more successors, spin-offs, and other tangible products, it’s no exaggeration to say that the Air Jordan 1 is the most iconic Shoes ever made sneakers. Here, Footwear News looks back at the history of the Air Jordan 1 and how it became such an influential piece.

before nike

Before entering the NBA, Michael Jordan played in Converse sneakers throughout his college and international career. In a photo of his game-winning shot as a freshman in the 1982 NCAA Championship Game, the famous Chevron logo can be seen on his feet. That shoe was the Converse Pro Leather, the same All-Star shoe Jordan famously wore while playing for the University of North Carolina. One of the 25 most expensive sneakers ever sold is a pair of Converse Fastbreak Mids worn by Jordan during the 1984 Olympic gold medal game, which sold for $190,000 at auction in 2017.

Despite Jordan’s experience wearing Converse, Adidas was still a favorite for Jordan’s signature after he turned pro. In a clip from the documentary “The Last Dance,” Jordan can be seen in his college dormitory saying, “I love the Lakers, I love Marcus Johnson, I love Adidas shoes.”

As David Falk, Jordan’s agent from 1984 to 2003, goes on to explain in the documentary, Adidas was “dysfunctional” at the time, and as much as he wanted the young star, he couldn’t give him his own shoe. Converse, which owns Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, said it would not elevate Jordan over existing NBA stars, leaving room for Nike to move in even though it was the leader in sneakers at the time. In bad situation.

first contract

Jordan’s first contract with Nike lasted for five years and was worth $2.5 million, which was three times the contract signed by any other NBA player. A clause in the contract allowed Nike to terminate the contract early if Jordan failed to be named Rookie of the Year, average 20 points per game or be an All-Star within the first three years. He hit all three goals in his first year, with sales matching his impressive rookie output.

Crucially, as depicted in the film Air, Jordan’s mother Gloria insisted that her son also receive a share of the profits from his shoes. Jordan’s expectation was to sell a total of $3 million worth of sneakers by the end of his fourth year. In the first year alone, Nike’s sales reached $126 million.

Nike Air Ship, aka “Pre-Jordan”

Since the Air Jordan 1 was not yet ready, Jordan began his NBA career wearing the Nike Air Ship. The sneaker, designed by Bruce Kilgore, played a key role in the early mythology of Air Jordan, as its black and red colorway drew the ire of the NBA for not complying with the NBA’s uniform guidelines. It was actually the Air Ship, not the Air Jordan, that was banned by the NBA and fined every time Jordan wore it, but that doesn’t stop Nike from continuing to tell that story when marketing Jordan shoes. The first sneaker.

Historically, the Air Ship was little more than a trivia answer for meticulous sneakerheads, but the sneaker made a comeback in 2023 and officially became part of Jordan Brand, releasing multiple versions, including collaborations with A Ma Maniére and Corporate cooperation.

Air Jordan 1 debuts

The first time Jordan wore his own sneakers in an NBA game was in his 11th game, a home game against the Philadelphia 76ers on November 17, 1984. Its white, red, and black “Chicago” color scheme does comply with NBA jersey regulations, and it is also the version that Jordan wears most on the court. The only other colorway Jordan wore during the game was the “Black Toe,” which featured a different arrangement of the same color. Meanwhile, Jordan only wore the “Bred” (short for “black and red”) colorway on an NBA court during the 1985 All-Star Weekend Slam Dunk Contest, which was derived from the banned Air Ship.

Nike began selling Air Jordan 1 in April 1985, first in six test markets in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit and Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina. Each pair of Air Jordans sold for $65. Over $29 In these markets alone, sales reached $1 million in less than a month. The rest of the country didn’t gain access until July, but the phenomenon has already begun.

The Air Jordan 1 designed by Peter Moore shares a lot of the same DNA as the Air Ship. While the Jumpman logo is derived from a promotional image of the Air Jordan 1, the image itself is a recreation of a shot from the Air Jordan 1. Life In the magazine, Jordan is wearing New Balance sneakers. This famous logo did not appear on the shoes until Air Jordan 3. The iconic logo of the Air Jordan 1 and Air Jordan 2 is the Wings logo, which Moore first drew on an airplane, inspired by the plastic wings that captains often gave to children.

The panels on the Air Jordan 1 are more different from each other than those on the Air Ship, which is why it has been so slow to perform in so many different color schemes over the years. Moore considered color an important feature of jump sports because he wanted to break with the tradition of predominantly white or black sneakers that had previously defined the sport. Although the red, black and white matched his Chicago Bulls colors, Jordan was initially uninterested in the original “Bred” color scheme because he associated it with the Devil.

Jordan continued to wear his debut sneakers in his second NBA season, although he missed 64 games with a broken foot. After returning from injury, he played in several different versions of the Air Jordan 1, including custom ankle straps and sole units borrowed from the Nike Dunk and Air Jordan 2. Some of these “Frankenstein”-esque models were worn during games and Jordan is also one of the most expensive sneakers ever produced.

Original (or “OG”) colorways

The original version of the Air Jordan 1 has the most colorways of the sneaker series to date, including a low-top version. Here are every colorway released in 1985 and 1986.

Air Jordan 1 high top

• “nurture” or “forbidden”
• “Chicago”
• “Black Toes”
• “Royal”
• “shadow”
• “White/Grey”
• ‘Kentucky’ or ‘Storm Blue’
• “panda”
• “University of North Carolina”
• “Metallic Blue”
• “Metallic Red”
• “metallic green”
• “Metallic Orange”
• “Metallic Purple”
• “Metal Black”

Air Jordan 1 low top

• “Metallic Blue”
• “White/Grey”

first retro

1994 marks the 10th anniversary of Nike’s first reissue or “retro” of the Air Jordan 1 . The “Bred” and “Chicago” colorways are back with a new price of $80, but with demand being so low, they’re discounted for a fraction of that. Skateboarders rushed to buy a cheap pair and realized that decade-old basketball technology was still perfectly suited to skating, creating an unexpected legacy for the sport that continues to this day.

In 2001, people were more receptive to classic sneakers, thanks in large part to the proliferation of Mitchell & Ness “retro” jerseys, which was the next Air Jordan 1 Retro release. Both the “Bred” and “Royal” colorways have been re-released, while Japan has also released some new exclusive colorways under the CO.JP banner. Although the demand is now there, Jordan Brand will still limit the number of new and original colorways of the Air Jordan 1 that can be released. The proliferation of styles we’re used to today wouldn’t really begin until a decade later, and now many sneakerheads would argue that the Air Jordan 1 should be re-released in a more limited fashion.

About the author:

Ian Cervantes is a Senior Hot News Editor Footwear News covers sneakers exclusively. After beginning his career in pop culture, he covered streetwear and sneakers at Input and Highsnobiety. He firmly believes that “the ball is life” and doesn’t make a fuss if his ball gets dirty.