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23ISBACK - AIR JORDAN NEWS

Nike CEO plans to reduce the amount of Retro Jordans. It’s no secret that Nike’s stock has been in a free-fall and changes need to be made. In the recent Oct. 1st earnings call, the CEO of Nike said he plans to scale back the number of Retro Jordans that are released and reduce the quantity, making them more limited. He also said new layoffs will begin at Nike starting in 2027.

A third ‘Space Jam’ themed Retro XI? It’s not confirmed yet, but it appears this color will be releasing in November in women’s sizing. The upper has a color changing effect. Photo

SoleFly x AJ 5. SoleFly is a Miami-based sneaker & apparel boutique founded in 2010 by Carlos Prieto (who is Michael Jordan's brother-in-law). This SoleFly collab is expected to release on Dec. 5 and it’ll be limited. Photo

Retro 6 (White/Infrared). An OG color from 1991 will be making a return in less than 2 months. (Nov. 7) Photo

Retro 8 ‘Knicks.’ They’ll be available in stores on Dec. 24 and they’ll come in a matching blue Jordan face box. Christmas Eve is a strange date to release a shoe, so we wouldn’t be surprised if the Jordan Brand moves up the date. Photo

Air Jordan 17 LOW: Two new colors. Infinite Archives is doing another collab with the Jordan Brand. These two colors look amazing and are said to be coming out in Spring 2027. The bad news is they will likely be on the limited side and hard to get. Retail price will be $255. Photo

Air Jordan 9 (Black/Charcoal/Red). One of the original colors from 1994. It was last retroed in 2010. After a 17-year break they’ll be making a return in Fall 2027. This one is going to be on a lot of people’s watchlist. Photo

‘Knicks’ Retro 10. It looks like the Jordan Brand is releasing more Knicks colorways after their NBA Championship. These Retro 10’s are planned for a Fall 2027 release. Photo

‘Blue Ferrari’ Retro XIV. We’re all familiar with the Ferrari red 14’s, but expect to see this blue version next year. Photo

SPIDER-MAN x AJ 1 HI OG. Another Air Jordan 1 collab with the Spider-Man series is supposed to come out next summer around the same time that the new "Beyond the Spider-Verse” movie comes out. No photos have leaked yet, but the color scheme is expected to be the same as before, Black/Red/White.

Sport Blue 6’s. Look for the White & Blue 6’s to make a return in Fall 2027. Video

Retro 5 ‘LANEY’ will be returning in May 2027 after a 14-year break. Laney High is the high school that Michael Jordan attended in Wilmington, NC. Photo

XI LOW (White/Red). The last time this color came out was in 2016. Look for them to return in April 2027. Photo

“Green Screen” XI. This limited AJ XI will be coming out on November 14th for $255. The shoes will come in a special box and the outsole will be glow-in-the-dark. The all-green color is inspired by the green screen they used when filming the movie Space Jam. Photo : Photo2‍ ‍

Air Jordan 17 (White/College Blue) will be released on Feb 19, 2027, and yes, they will be coming in the silver briefcase. Expect them to be limited and retail for $350. Photo

MJ STORIES

Michael Jordan's LAST GAME as a Chicago Bull is still the most-watched game in NBA history. (1998 NBA Finals Game 6 in Utah)

Michael Jordan’s mansion SOLD. After more than 10 years on the market, Michael Jordan’s home in Highland Park, IL has sold for $9.5 million. Watch a VIDEO tour of his amazing home

AIR movie. The story about how Nike took a gamble in the 1980s to sign Michael Jordan and give him his own shoe is available on Amazon Prime. It’s a must watch with great performances by Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Jason Bateman, Chris Tucker, and Viola Davis. Watch it here

When Nike signed Michael Jordan in 1984 they were hoping to do $3 million in shoe sales in 4 years. Nike ended up doing $126 million in Air Jordan sales in the first year! 😲

Before the 1997-98 NBA season began Phil Jackson called it The Last Dance knowing it was going to be the final season for the team. Bulls GM Jerry Krause was jealous of Phil and wanted him gone. Krause told Phil before the season started that even if he went 82-0 he would not be back.

Jordan made it clear he wouldn’t play for another coach. Pippen was unhappy because he was underpaid and because Krause wanted to trade him. The bad news is that season would indeed be their last dance. The good news is they left Bulls fans with an incredible ending that will never be forgotten.

ESPN interview with The Last Dance director. Video

$468,000. That’s how much an unused Chicago Bulls ticket sold for at an auction a few years ago. What’s so special about it? It’s the only known unused ticket from Jordan’s NBA debut in 1984.

$10 million. That’s how much a game-worn Michael Jordan jersey sold for at a Sotheby’s auction. The jersey was worn by Mike during Game 1 of the 1998 Finals against the Utah Jazz. The $10.1 million winning bid is a record for any piece of game-worn sports memorabilia, proving once again that Michael Jordan is the GOAT.

After the Bulls drafted Jordan with the 3rd pick in 1984, they signed him to a 7-year deal for only $6 million. That's less than $1 million a year!

Michael Jordan’s 1996 Mercedes sold for over $200,000. MJ’s S600 Coupe had a V-12 engine, chrome wheels, and tiny wipers on the headlights. Even with 150,000 miles it sold on eBay a few years ago for $202,200. Photo

Someone stole Mike’s jersey on Valentine’s Day in 1990. MJ had to wear #12 with no name on the back because that was the only jersey the Bulls had. A few days later they found his #23 jersey in the ceiling tiles of the visitor’s locker room. Video

In a game against Utah in 1987, Jordan got the ball in the post, turned, and dunked on a short John Stockton. Someone in the crowd (supposedly the Utah Jazz owner) yelled, "Hey Jordan! Pick on somebody your own size!" On the next play, Mike got the ball, flew in the air, and dunked on Mel Turpin, Utah's 6'11" center. As Mike ran back on defense he looked at the guy and asked, "Was he big enough?" 😂 Video

In May 1995 against Orlando, Mike decided to stop wearing the #45 and switched back to the #23 after Nick Anderson of the Magic said, “45 is not 23.” Click here for highlights from that game. Look closely and you'll see that he was the only Bull with white shoes on (Concord XI's). The NBA considered that a uniform violation and fined him for not wearing black shoes like the rest of his teammates.

The reason Jordan left the NBA to play baseball. It was 1993 and the Bulls had just won their third straight championship. Michael was mentally exhausted and out of challenges. He felt he had nothing else to prove on the court. His father had tried to get him to retire in 1991 after the first championship, so he could give baseball a shot.

Then out of nowhere in July 1993 Michael's father was murdered. His body was found floating in a creek in South Carolina after being shot. His red Lexus (a gift from Mike) with license plate UNC0023 was stripped and found in the woods near Fayetteville, North Carolina.

Michael wanted to honor his father's wish, so he retired from the NBA and made an attempt at a baseball career.

Coincidentally Jerry Reinsdorf, the owner of the Bulls, also owned the Chicago White Sox. The Birmingham Barons were a Double-A minor league affiliate of the Sox, so Mike made a deal with Reinsdorf to play for the Barons. Michael worked his butt off everyday to get better at baseball. He finished batting .202 with 3 home runs, 51 runs batted in, and 30 stolen bases.

In August 1994 the MLB went on strike. With nothing to do because of the baseball lockout Mike decided to call his friend and former Bulls teammate B.J. Armstrong. They met up at Bakers Square near the Bulls practice facility in Deerfield, IL. After they finished eating, B.J. invited Mike to practice to see his old friends. Phil Jackson let Mike participate in practices for a few weeks and that’s when the love for the game started to return. Then on March 18, 1995 Jordan sent a two-word fax to the media announcing his return:

"I'm back."

The rest is history.