Jordan 11 Retro
"Space Jam"
378037-003
This Jordan 11 Retro is based on one of the earliest AJ11 sneakers that was worn by Michael during his 1995 comeback and in the 1996 movie Space Jam, after which it is named. Like that shoe, it is built upon a translucent outsole whose wavy grip lines combine with the herringbone ones in the opaque sections below the forefoot and heel to offer the wearer high levels of traction. These latter areas come in an appealing shade of purple known as Dark Concord, while the carbon fiber plate set between them and the midsole is decorated with a black and dark gray grid design with a bright white Jumpman in its center. The Phylon foam midsole layered above it is also white, and a full-length Air unit concealed inside the feature supplies supreme comfort underfoot.
Meanwhile, the upper switches to darker tones, its lustrous patent leather mudguard and ballistic mesh quarter panel both in sleek black. Almost everything else on the upper exhibits this hue, from the rope-style laces to the mesh tongue and the leather heel overlay. The tongue patch, which wraps over the middle of the feature on the AJ11, is also black, though the branding text woven through it is white and the mini Jumpman residing in its center is Dark Concord.
The shoe’s inner continues the stealthy theme through the use of black across both the padded lining, which softly hugs the foot and ankle, and the insole. However, a contrasting set of Nike Air branding stands out vividly in white on the latter. Back on the outer, the plush inner lining spills out onto the top of the heel, creating a tab there in the shape of an upside down cone. Normally, this would contain Jordan’s favored jersey number of 23, but this sneaker displays a white 45 upon its heel tab instead – a reference to the player’s baseball number and the one he wore temporarily on his return to basketball. Just next to this is a concluding Dark Concord Jumpman which has been artfully embroidered into the lateral heel to round out this iconic Air Jordan 11 colorway.