Image courtesy of SneakerBarDetroit.com.
In these uncertain times, I can take solace in the fact that retro Air Jordans will still be released and scooped up by the masses in hopefully the near future. Well, maybe not all the time (apologies to the Jordan 4 Retro ‘What The’), but Jordans are still a coveted item for sneaker enthusiasts, especially around the holiday season. With the dawn of a new decade upon us, and what a start to the decade it has been, I wanted to take a small tour down memory lane and go over my top three favorite OG Air Jordan releases of the 2010’s. A couple notes though before we get into it: a) the shoes must have been an original release colorway, (ex. the red/black 1’s from 1985), b) the shoe must have been released in the 2010’s and c) must not be a collaboration (Travis Scott, Virgil Abloh, etc.)
With those rules in mind let’s go over some honorable mention favorites of mine from the last 10 years.
Jordan 5 Retro Grape (2013): Made famous by Will Smith on the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, the Grape 5’s have been a staple of most sneakerhead collections. With a colorway that invokes a very 90’s era feel (Larry Johnson and the Charlotte Hornets anyone?), the Grapes are an essential piece for most collections. Also special salute to Chris Rock for rocking a pair of these on the cover for his comedy album, “Born Suspect”. Jordan 3 Retro Black Cement (2018): Pencilled by many as the greatest Air Jordan of all time, the Black Cement 3 is an iconic colorway on an iconic silhouette. Made famous by Michael Jordan during the 1988 All-Star game and in a series of ads with Spike Lee, the Black Cement 3 is an excellent shoe and also one of the staple pieces of any collection. Now with those two out of the way, let’s roll onto the top three.
3. Jordan 11 Retro Space Jam (2016): The original pair of “Space Jams” were debuted back in the 1995 NBA playoffs by Michael Jordan against the Orlando Magic. Led by Penny Hardaway and Shaquille O’Neal, the upstart Magic were able to topple the mighty Chicago Bulls 4-2 in Jordan’s return from baseball. However, the legacy of the shoes only grew from there when they were later featured in the iconic “Space Jam” film alongside a slew of classic Looney Tunes characters. When this pair re-released back in 2016, it actually featured the number 45 on the back as opposed to MJ’s original 23 which was a feature that was present on the original model back in 1995. Additionally, back in 2016, the Space Jam re-launch was Nike’s “largest and most successful shoe launch in the history of the company” according to president Trevor Edwards.
2. Jordan 11 Retro Concord (2018): Man, in terms of sheer boldness, there might not be a better silhouette and color combination than the Air Jordan 11 “Concord”. Released around the same time as the “Space Jams”, the Concords (named after the purple-ish hits on the bottom of the sneaker), are an absolute masterpiece. The re-release in 2018 also featured the number 45 on the back of the sneaker and was an immediate sell-out upon release. While Jordan Brand has had to fend off the likes of Adidas’ Yeezy line the past couple of years, the holiday releases of Jordan 11’s have always been an immediate hit. Also continuing the trend of outstanding holiday releases, the 2018 version of the Concord was supposedly Nike’s biggest release ever.
1. Jordan 4 Retro White Cement (2016): Finally to round out our list, Jordan Brand released an all-time classic just in in time for NBA All-Star weekend 2016 complete with iconic “Nike Air” branding. To me, the white cement 4 is not only an iconic sneaker of the 2010’s, but also one of the most iconic sneakers of the late 80’s and early 90’s. With it wing-like straps, grey and black cement speckles and vibrant red Jumpman logo, this is truly one of my favorite sneakers of all time. It really is a perfect shoe from feel to look and that is why it tops my list for best Jordan retro of the 2010’s.
Well that does it for my personal top three list of Jordans from the 2010’s, leave me a comment below with your favorite! Stay safe and stay fly out there y’all.
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