SOLE COLLECTOR: Sneakers

Jordan XV

The Air Jordan XV is easily the most polarizing model of the line, for a variety of reasons. This shoe was first released in 1999, but Michael never played a game in the XV, as he had stepped back that year following his second retirement. Many refused to accept this as a true Air Jordan model because Jordan was away from the game. The appearance was also a cause of great debate – a shoe like the XV had never been seen before.

Like many Air Jordan models, the XV drew inspiration from outside of the game of basketball; this time, inspiration came from the X-15 fighter jet. Aside from the most obvious connection between the aircraft and the shoe being that this was the 15th Air Jordan model, the X-15 was a perfect parallel for Michael Jordan. Quickness, agility and the ability to strike at any time were visible characteristics in both the jet and MJ himself. The X-15 fighter jet was deemed to be revolutionary in its design, and at the first sight of the XV, it is easy to see that same forward-thinking mentality that Tinker Hatfield is known for. Design-wise, the most telling points of the Jordan XV would be the pointed tongue and the narrow, aerodynamic look of the entire shoe. With the tongue protruding out of the shoe, many were reminded of Jordan himself and his signature tongue-out, on-court tendencies. Some say that there was a Prada influence in the use of the stripe down the back of the XV, although that remains a mystery. The stripe that ran down the back of the shoe consisted of numbers that were important to Jordan: those being 2.17, which is Michael’s birthday; 15 for the model number; 6 for the number of championships Jordan had won and 23, Jordan’s jersey number.

Once again, with Jordan not being on the floor, Jordan Brand relied on other players to carry the line. In the NBA, Ray Allen and Reggie Miller were the most noticeable players to wear the shoe, and it was worn in the NCAA by the University of North Carolina and the University of Cincinnati.

With this model, there were even less Bulls-related colorways released than with the XIV. The Black/Varsity Red colorway was the only Bulls look, the White/Columbia Blue/Black paid homage to MJ’s alma mater, North Carolina, and the Flint Grey/White and Obsidian/White/Metallic Silver also appeared. For many, the player exclusive colorways were much more exciting. Reggie Miller often went with the black and yellow, while Ray Allen went with the white and purple at home. Many were upset that the PE colorways that they most wanted were unattainable, which may have hurt demand for this shoe.

The XV has just recently received the Retro treatment for the initial Black/Varsity Red colorway. For this release, a new method called Flight Club was used through jumpman23.com. This is a system in which potential customers must either receive an email invitation or be invited by someone who was already a member. The polls are still out on how the XV will be received as a Retro, but many younger fans have been happy to have the chance at a model that they were too young to attain at the time of its original release.