The NBA has a story that, 31 years ago, the league banned rookie Jordan from wearing a red and black color cheap Air Jordans 1, which triggered a series of events. This incident is well known to the media and fans, and I believe it does. However, is the truth of the matter really the same?
In the story of the cheap retro Air Jordan 1 red and black ban, Jordan played a red and black color Air Jordan 1 on the court, each ball was fined $ 5,000, the reason for the alliance is to break the consistency rules. This rule requires players to wear sneakers not only to match the jersey, but also to match the sneakers of teammates.
At the time, black and white sneakers were the mainstream, while red and black collocations were considered to be deviant. David Stern, then president of the league, didn’t want to see the traditional red and black sneakers appear on the court, and Jordan insisted that Nike said that he would pay all the fines for Jordan. This rebellious spirit combined with Jordan’s flying skills. Let cheap retro Jordans 1 achieve classics.
The question is, how many games did Jordan wear the red and black Air Jordan 1 in his rookie season? Did Nike really pay a fine? The bigger question is, is the cheap real Air Jordans 1 red and black color really the first basketball shoe to be banned by the NBA?
According to information provided by senior sneaker fans and Jordan fans, the first sneaker worn by Jordan in his rookie season is not the legendary Air Jordan 1 red and black, but Nike’s Air Ship red and black color. Jordan passed through three color-matched Air Ships, white, white, and red. The red and black Air Ships were actually banned by the league, not Air Jordan 1.
This is Jordan’s photo in the 1984 preseason game against the Knicks, he is wearing a red and black color Air Ship. The game took place on October 18, 1984 at the Madison Square Garden. That game was the sixth preseason game for the Bulls. They had a confrontation with the Knicks on October 15, 1984. In combination with the above mentioned, the vice president of the alliance sent a letter to Nike that Jordan was wearing the shoes before and after October 18, 1984. We can know that the shoes banned by the league are Air Ship red and black.
In the YouTube video, you can see Jordan in an interview with the Air Ship in red and black, at the Madison Square Garden, on October 18, 1984. On November 8, 1984, Jordan’s first show in the Madison Square Garden regular season, wearing the Air Ship, but the color became red and white.
There are no photos showing Jordan’s passing through the red and black air Jordan 1 in the NBA rookie season. Although some fans have taken some pictures, they tried to prove that Jordan passed the red and black Air Jordan 1, such as the 1985 dunk contest. And a screenshot of a documentary filmed by Jordan and Ewing.
However, the dunk contest does not fall within the scope of the game in which the cheap Jordans are punished. Look at the letter sent by the league on February 25, 1985, and the 1985 All-Star Weekend started on February 10th. It may be that the league had worn sneakers around Jordan on October 18th. The violation warned Nike, and the shoes used by Jordan in the dunk contest once again alerted the league, so they again warned Nike, but there is no evidence that the NBA issued a ticket.
In “Inside Sports” released in November 1985, Jordan and Ewing became the cover characters. The magazine was mainly to promote the 1985-86 season. The design concept of the cover was the best rookie of last season. Jordan confronted the new season. Ewing. The cover for the magazine is clearly not within the control of the NBA’s sneakers, and it is still after Jordan’s rookie season.
The documentary mentioned above is called Just For Kicks. This film tries to prove that Jordan was fined for wearing the red and black color match Air Jordan 1 in his rookie season. However, Nike and NBA have not provided it so far. Punish the evidence that did occur. The screenshot of this documentary has been revised. It is not Jordan in the rookie season, because the Jordan away jersey in the rookie period is printed on “Chicago” instead of “Bulls”.
Written here, I think everyone has already made it clear that the truth of the matter was that the sneakers that were banned at the time were the red and black models of the Air Ship, not the cheap Jordan shoes 1 with red and black colors. The so-called red and black Air Jordan 1 was banned, but Nike’s marketing strategy, as Nike signed Jordan’s famous scout Vakalo said: “When you tell the public that a cheap jordans sale is forbidden, it often means Popular. When you tell them they can’t do anything, they have to do it.”