The Air Jordan line returned in 2014 with the Air Jordan XX9. The 29 continued to push the envelope for Jordan Brand when it came to design and function. Take a look at the story of the XX9 below.
XX9
By 2014 Tinker Hatfield was more than an icon – he was a god in the industry as a designer and visionary. One of the many things that made Tinker special was that he never stopped trying to innovate. Tinker had a long history with Jordan Brand when he started work on the XX9. It would have been easy for the designer to be satisfied with his resume when it came to the 29. But as Tinker always did, he set out to do something new and exciting.
As he often did when it came to Air Jordan sneakers, Tinker looked to high fashion for design inspiration. When it came to function, the designer wanted to do something that could change Jordan Brand and the industry. The Air Jordan 29 was the first shoe to have an upper that was entirely woven. It had a re-engineered Flight Plate, along with a performance woven upper. This allowed the shoe to be the lightest Air Jordan ever at the time. The choices were made so the XX9 could help athletes achieve maximum performance.
Since Michael Jordan was long retired by the time the XX9 released, Russell Westbrook served as the shoe’s main endorser. The Air Jordan 29 originally sold for $225.
Legacy
The XX9 did a lot of new and exciting things for Jordan Brand. 29 models in and Jordan Brand was still trying new things and pushing sneakers into the future.
- Adam C. Better
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