Nike Air Jordan

Nike Air Jordan

Air Jordan shoes, fondly called as “Js” or “MJs,” is a brand of basketball shoes manufactured by Nike and endorsed by no other than the legendary Michael Jordan. Now, Air Jordan is especially distributed by the Jordan Brand, a branch of Nike. The first Air Jordan shoes were released in 1985, and since then 23 different versions of these shoes have been created.

Avid Air Jordan collectors categorize the shoes according to model and year of release. There are five classes of Air Jordans – Originals (OG), Player Exclusive, Retros, Retro-pluses (Retro +), and Samples. Aside from these, it has also released a collection of Team shoes, which is outside the Air Jordan line coverage. The line also occasionally manufactures signature shoes that were released before.

In 1984, Nike was stereotyped as brand for “white joggers.” The profits from their running shoes were slowly waning so the company thought of crossing the “sports border” in order to augment their sales. Nike saw an opportunity in the basketball world, and signed then-unknown NBA rookie Michael Jordan for a 5-year deal of $2.5 million.

Since then, Jordans have been a huge hit, both for Nike and Michael Jordan. The following are descriptions and successes of each model of Air Jordans from 1985 to the present