The Air Jordan XI model was also a famous design from Tinker Hatfield. Michael Jordan was in a career in baseball, Hatfield designed the sneaker waiting for Jordan to comeback and hoping he would play in them.
- Air Jordan 11(XI) Retro New “Bred”
The cordura nylon top of the sneaker was meant to give the Air Jordan XI lighter and more durable than the past sneakers. Further changes came with the use of a carbon fiber plates in the clear outsole, giving the shoe better torque when turning on the court. The favorite piece of the shoes that was known ever so famously of the shoes was its shiny leather mid and toebox. Patent leather was lightweight, when compared to genuine leather, and also tended not to stretch as much – a property to help keep the foot within the bounds of the shoes bed during direction changes on the court. The shiny leather gave the XI a “formal” look – a fact when this shoe released, people would use them with their business suits instead of dress shoes.
The sneakers were only samples in 1995 when Jordan decided to come back in the NBA. Tinker Hatfield and Nike discouraged Michael Jordan playing in them, but when produced he wore them. Also to note, Jordan was also in violation of the league dress code by wearing the shoes, as his team mates wore all black sneakers. He was then fined $5,000 for not respecting the Bulls colorway policy. After the fining, Nike made him a pair of the shoes in a black/white/concord colorway for the series against Orlando. women Jordans 2013 also wore this colorway in the movie Space Jam. A similar black/white/royal blue colorway was released to the public at the end of 2000. The colorway was changed for the public release because the concord purple had looked like royal blue on TV.
Jordan wore the Air Jordan XI model to help the Chicago Bulls claim the 1995-96 NBA Champion ship. The shoes received more media exposure when Michael Jordan wore the Air Jordan XI model in the 1996 animated movie “Space Jam”. These shoes were eventually released in 2000 and re-released in 2009 with the nickname “Space Jams”. The concord purple was changed to royal blue for the released versions of the shoes.
Long a favorite of Jordan enthusiasts, the Air Jordan XI Playoffs will be making yet another Retro return this Holiday. Perhaps one of the most anticipated releases of the year from the Jordan camp, the iconic shoe is making its Bred return positioned atop the customary Varsity Red undersole and pure white midsole. All-black everything comprises the upper as an all-red Jumpman is emblazoned across the outer heel panel. The patent black leather panel runs the entirety of the shoes perimeter before rounding out across the toe box.
With only days away from the release of the 2012 Air Jordan 11 Bred we dug in the archive to bring out the Original Air Jordan 11 Bred to do a comparison.
The Original Air Jordan 11 Black/Red released in 1995. This was the first time an Air Jordan saw patent leather.
Comparing the 1995 to the 2012, of course their are quality issues. The patent leather on the original and mesh is of higher quality. The carbon fiber on the 1995 is a bit lighter shade than the 2012, and of course Nike Air is present on the insole of the 1995 version. The 2012 Air Jordan XI (11) Bred releases December 21st 2012, and will retail for $185. Good luck to everyone that is camping or entered a raffle.