Image via Complex Original
Sneakers aren't a recent phenomenon, but sneaker debuts are. Not that sneakers weren't debuted at all in the past—after all, someone had to be the first to wear everything—but no one really started taking note of it until fairly recently. It is tragically lost to history who was first to wear, say the Converse All-Star. And while Clyde Frazier himself undoubtedly debuted the Clyde, good luck sorting out when and where. Now though, the debuts of sneakers tend to be big events — whether they're orchestrated by the manufacturer or not. Check out The Greatest Sneaker Debuts and let us know what other ones you remember in the comments section below.
Michael Jordan becomes Air Jordan. Officially.
Sneaker: Air Jordan I
Year: 1985
To the best we can find out, Michael Jordan debuted the all-new Nike Air Jordan in a home game against the Philadelphia 76ers on November 17, 1984. The sneaker wouldn't release at retail until the following April, and Jordan's rookie-of-the-year exploits would build tremendous demand. The release was chaotic, as stores quickly sold out of the black and red shoe. It was the start of a revolution. *cue Beatles song*
P-Rod gets a pair of SB Dunks extra early.
Sneaker: Nike SB Dunk Low "Cinco De Mayo"
Year: 2004
Los Angeles' own Paul Rodriguez was determined to make a statement in 2004's Summer X-Games after finishing in 3rd place the previous year. Not only did P-Rod make a statement by winning gold, he did it wearing the "Cinco De Mayo" SB Dunks, which would release seven months later to help celebrate the Mexican holiday.
Kanye West upstages Kobe Bryant in his own film.
Sneaker: Nike Air Yeezy II
Year: 2011
In one of the most brilliant marketing mixes in recent history, Nike teamed up with director Robert Rodriguez to help launch the Nike Zoom Kobe VI with a short film entitled The Black Mamba. Bruce WIllis may have been the most unexpected of the people chosen for the film but the bad guy, Kanye West, stole the show. Kanye wore the Nike Air Yeezy II for the first time during the film, although it might take a magnifying glass to see them, this "first look" picked up the sneaker frenzy right where it left off.
LeBron James breaks out the X for the Olympics
Sneaker: Nike LeBron X
Year: 2012
King James was on a mission at the summer Olympics in London. After winning his first ring with the Miami Heat, James led Team USA back to the top of the basketball world by putting up unbelievable numbers, including the first triple double in USA Basketball history. But for sneakerheads it was the medal game when LeBron had everyone at attention by debuting the Nike LeBron X in a USA themed colorway.
Michael Jordan unveils the Columbia XI.
Sneaker: Air Jordan XI "Columbia"
Year: 1996
We'd like to think this is where LeBron James got the inspiration for his draft-day suit. Because for every All-Star Game save his first prior to this one, Michael Jordan wore black-based sneakers. But in 1996, coming off a two-year absence, Mike wore shining white. Nearly all white, in the "Columbia" Air Jordan XI. The following year he would go back to black with the "Playoff" XIIs. So this year - and this sneaker - stands alone.
Nike's first Air shoe, the Tailwind, completes a marathon.
Sneaker: Nike Air Tailwind
Year: 1978
Nike's first Air shoe debuted quietly in the 1978 Honolulu Marathon, far away from paparazzi (did they even exist in 1978?) and even the pomp and circumstance of an Olympic Games. Fitting for a shoe that would be worn primarily by amateur athletes and have no one's name attached to it, not even Frank Rudy, the aeronautical engineer who developed Air. First Hawaii, then the world.
Mike Bibby beats Penny to the punch.
Sneaker: Nike Air Foamposite One
Year: 1997
How was this not an improper NCAA benefit? OK, we're just kidding about that - no one wants to see Arizona stripped of the '97 NCAA title, except maybe Keith Van Horn and Utah. But Mike Bibby wearing the Foamposite One on-court before even Penny Hardaway was quite the perk of attending a Nike school. According to Miles Simon, a bunch of pairs of the royal Foams were sent to the Wildcats, but only Bibby was brave enough to wear them in games. He who dares wins.
Patent leather for the postseason.
Sneaker: Air Jordan XI "Concords"
Year: 1995
Failure? Michael Jordan didn't do failure, despite commercials to the contrary. Well, missed shots were one thing, but the 1995 NBA Playoffs were something completely different. For the first (and only) time since 1990, Michael Jordan's Bulls lost a playoff series. They didn't even make it to the Eastern Finals, falling in the second round to the Orlando Magic. But Jordan still produced some magic, debuting the Air Jordan XI during their first-round series against the Hornets. He would also switch back to No. 23 against the Magic, but to no avail. Even Tinker's magic couldn't help him - this time.
Marty McFly gets the Air MAG early.
Sneaker: Nike Air Mag
Year: 1989
Never has one scene from a movie done more for a (nonexistent) sneaker. Well, not that the Air MAG was entirely nonexistent. Tinker Hatfield not only designed the shoe for Back to the Future Part II, but storyboarded the scene. But Marty McFly's 2015 Nikes were nothing more than a prop, no more available to the public than a time-travelling DeLorean. But the self-lacing sneakers captured the imagination of budding sneakerheads everywhere, who kept on Nike until a very limited (and for charity) run of Air MAGs were made in 2011. So, GR in two years? Your call, Nike.
Michael Jordan steals his own brand's thunder.
Sneaker: Air Jordan XIV
Year: 1998
By 1998, Michael Jordan could do pretty much whatever he wanted. And on the verge of his sixth NBA title (and sixth Finals MVP), he decided to stage his own product unveil on national TV. Having worn the Air Jordan XIII through the playoffs (including some PE lows), he switched into the upcoming Air Jordan XIV for part of the Finals, including the penultimate Game Six. The sneaker wouldn't release until the following year, but the shot over Bryon Russell was more effective than any commercial could have ever been. Sorry, Mars.
Seemingly everyone at the London Olympics goes Flyknit.
Sneaker: Nike Flyknit Racer
Year: 2012
The entire Team USA team was laced with brightly colored Nike Flyknit Racers for the Olympics in London. Athletes like Michale Phelps and Ryan Lochte (among many others), lit up the eyes of on-looking sneakerheads by wearing Volt colored Nike Flyknit Racers. Clearly, with the amount of people wearing Flyknits today, the approach worked just the way it was suppoed to.
The Nike Dunk SB takes Paris.
Sneaker: Nike SB Dunk Low "Paris"
Year: 2003
The White Dunk Exhibition of 2003 was primarily an art show, with 25 artists turning the venerable Nike Dunk into works of art. But it also marked the debut of several impossibly rare Dunk SBs honoring the host cities for the exhibition: Paris, Tokyo and London. With just over 200 pairs of each produced, the Paris Dunks, each featuring different parts of Bernard Buffet's work, still remain a grail to many.
Michael Jordan takes flight.
Sneaker: Air Jordan III
Year: 1988
Back in the stone age of the '80s, when dinosaurs still walked the earth, there was no such thing as a "leak." You walked into a store, saw a pair of sneakers on the wall, said "oh shit, the new joints are out!" and went home to get your lawnmowing money right. Air Jordan changed all that. The new shoe debuted during All-Star weekend, both on Mike's feet and in a Spike Lee directed commercial. It was hard to say which was more influential. Even if Money hadn't won the Slam Dunk Contest and the All-Star MVP in '88, we would have all still wanted the IIIs anyway. Right?
LeBron James and the Air Zoom Generation make their NBA debut.
Sneaker: Nike Air Zoom Generation
Year: 2003
LeBron James's NBA—and Nike—debut was the most anticipated since Michael Jordan's 18 years earlier. The stakes were slightly lower this time around, as the fate of the company didn't hinge on LeBron's success, but with a reported $90 million contract, The Chosen One was expected to perform. And his Air Zoom Generation, designed by a dream team of Nike designers, was expected to sell. LeBron scored 25 points on the road against the Kings in his first game, and it was on like Donkey Kong.
Kanye West dominates the 50th Grammys in his new Nikes.
Sneaker: Nike Air Yeezy
Year: 2008
If there were a sneaker that changed things, aside from those attached to Michael Jordan's name, it would be the Nike Air Yeezy. Kanye West shocked the newly forming sneaker community of the internet by wearing an (at the time) unknown pair of Nikes. Over a year later, Kanye West's first sneaker with Nike would release to hysteria and hypebeasts and lead the sneaker biz in a completely different direction.
