Air Jordan 11 (XI)

The Air Jordan XI - model was designed by Tinker Hatfield. While Jordan was still pursuing a career in baseball, Hatfield designed the shoe in hopes that Michael would eventually wear it if he returned to the NBA. The Air Jordan 11 are loved by many sneaker enthusiasts and are always a sell out. Air Jordan XI History Michael Jordan was now back in the NBA, and the Air Jordan XI was his shoe for the 1995-1996 season. But before Michael Jordan wore the model, Tinker had to design them. Tinker Hatfield thought that Nike should pull out all the stops and make a shoe out of materials that had never been used in a basketball shoe. At first, Tinker was thinking of using some high-end nylons, but good thing he changed his mind. Tinker wanted the Air Jordan 11 to look like a convertible, with a shiny body, so that is why the Air Jordan XI had patent leather. Not only was it the patent leather on the Air Jordan XI made them special, but the addition of a lightweight Phylon midsole with a full-length Air-Sole unit and full-length carbon fiber plate, as well as being supportive. But sadly, there were some defects in them.For the look of the shoe itself, Tinker was (like always) thinking of some inspirations. when Tinker saw a yellow lawn mower you wonder how he fit that into the Jordan 11.


In 1995-96 playoffs, Michael had a bad spill wearing the AJ XI, and the reason being is poor traction. Also the midsole would get creases very fast.The Jordan XI was meant to stand out with a fusion of performance and style. Taken from the world of high-end mountaineering backpacks, the condura nylon upper gave the Air Jordan XI model lightweight durability. Further innovation came with the use of a carbon fiber plate on the sole of the shoe, that can be seen underneath the clear outsole, which gave the shoe exceptional torsional rigidity. The most visually distinct aspect of the shoe was its shiny patent leather mid and toebox. A material long used in the fashion industry, patent leather was extremely lightweight, when compared to genuine leather, and also tended not to stretch - a very useful property to help keep the foot within the bounds of the shoe bed during quick direction changes on the court. The shiny leather gave the XI what many described as a "formal" look - a fact that many owners of the shoe took advantage of thereafter, pairing the shoe off the court with business suits in substitution for dress shoes. Boyz II Men wore black and white Air Jordan XI shoes with white suits at one of their concerts.



Air Jordan 11 came out in 1995. Three mids were released, and two I.E. lows. Only five pairs of the Air Jordan XI “Space Jams” were made for Michael, for the movie Space Jam. Five colorways re-released in 2001-2002. Eight Air Jordan XI lows were released in 2001 and two I.E. lows were released in 2003. In 2006, a Defining Moments Package was released which contained the Air Jordan XI and Air Jordan VI. Jordan wore the Air Jordan XI model to help the Chicago Bulls claim the 1995-1996 NBA championship. The legacy of the shoe was transferred to the silver screen as Jordan wore a black/white/blue colorway of the Air Jordan XI model in the 1996 Warner Bros. animated movie "Space Jam". Which was then fined for $5,000 for not respecting the bulls colorway policy.