Ranking All of Supreme's Nike Collaborations, From Worst to Best

Image via Supreme

Year: 2018

Air Force 1 Mids aren’t good. Making them look like Jeff Hamilton NBA jeans is even worse. -Matt Welty

Year: 2019

Not going to waste too much of your time here, these stink. The only time it's appropriate to wear either of these Supreme XIVs is if you’re in a biker gang. -Ben Felderstein

Year: 2018

Nike SB has a long history of using football shoes to make skate shoes. Look at the Zoom FC. The Gato is also a shoe that saw some play over the years. Supreme did the shoe, too. It’s not bad. But I’m from the school of thought where you don’t wear football shoes unless you’re playing football. So it misses the mark. -Matt Welty

Year: 2021

Supreme followed its usual rule of thumb with this one by collaborating with Nike on a silhouette that nobody would expect them to. Sometimes that formula yields surprisngly good results. This two-pack of Cross Trainer Lows is not one of those times, though. This is simply just one of those shoes that looks like it would be more at home on the shoe wall of a Finish Line in the mall than it would coming from the biggest streetwear brand in the world. Neither colorway is particularly offensive, but they don’t feel all that special either. Couple that with the much better collabs sprinkled throughout Supreme’s extensive archive of Nike projects and it lands this one in the bottom tier. —Mike DeStefano

Year: 2019

Supreme has a pretty sketchty history when it comes to working on Air Max models. The brand’s spin on the Air Max 98 is great, so is the Air Max 95. Other than that, not so much. The worst of the bunch is the Air Max 96, mainly because the shoe has see-through panels, which really don’t work for the design. Colorways are nice, though.

Year: 2022

The Air Zoom Flight 95 is one of Nike’s standout 1990s basketball shoes. The big, bug-eyed pods on the midsole, the carbon fiber-like pattern, its on-court representation courtesy of exciting up-and-comer Jason Kidd—it had everything a sneaker from that era needed. When Supreme got its hands on it earlier this year, the streetwear brand took a completely different approach, opting for three tonal colorways that swap the OG’s patterns for bandana paisley prints. There are even a few details that dial up the maximalism like repeating logos around the heel pod and a newly designed tongue logo. This isn’t a fan favorite, but Supreme does get some credit for its penchant of flipping ‘90s designs through a lens that is undeniably its own.  —Riley Jones

Year: 2022

This Air Max 98 TL collaboration isn’t going to win any awards for innovation, but what it does well is maintain the ‘90s sportswear theme Supreme has leaned into in recent years. Solid color blocking lets the sneaker’s geometric overlays shine, and those same lines help inform custom branding on the heel. The only major knock on these is that they don’t feature the original Air Max 98 TL bubble (the Air Max 97’s Air unit is used instead) but that’s likely a limitation on Nike’s side rather than a Supreme design decision. —Riley Jones

Year: 2019

It’s no secret that Supreme’s Nike collabs don’t hit quite the same way the older ones did. But the duo of Air Max Tailwind IVs that released in March 2019 seem like a victim of bad timing more than anything. The colorways are simple enough—one in its signature white and red, and the other in black with blue accents. The 3M boucle panels give a unique take on the retro runner too. These might be a sleeper people want in a few years. Grab them now while the resell is still low if you were ever considering it. -Mike DeStefano

Year: 2010

This is the only time Supreme has gotten to design its own Nike silhouette. The outcome? Not so hot. -Matt Welty

Year: 2011

Bad shoes. Better colorways. So slightly better. -Matt Welty

Year: 2015

You can go ahead and file this one under the increasingly growing “didn’t need to happen” folder when it comes to Supreme’s Nike collabs. We’ve seen the pairing come up with a lot of heat over the years, but we’ve also seen more and more swings and misses lately, including this five-pack from 2015. -Ben Felderstein

Year: 2013

The best thing about this collaboration is that, somehow, Val Kilmer got himself a pair of the Volt, tennis ball colorway of these when they released. -Matt Welty

Year: 2022

Back in 2006, Supreme collaborated with Nike SB on three colorways of the Blazer that have stood the test of time. The quilted uppers. The subtle Gucci homage. The python Swooshes. Everything came together to create a near flawless sneaker. So, doing it again 16 years later should yield the same results, right? Not exactly. Supreme tried to restore the feeling with two pairs of SB Blazer Mids in 2022. They feature the same details as their predecessors, like exotic Swooshes and quilted uppers. But the denim and all-black executions just don’t quite feel as special. Part of that is because the original trio was just that good. But these colorways still feel lackluster even when not being compared to the OGs. Denim shoes are a hard sell and the black pair was almost there. If only the midsole was white and not black. —Mike DeStefano

Year: 2019

What a disappointment. Supreme’s past work on the SB Dunk Low has been the stuff of legend, but this trio is FAR from that. I mean a Jewel Swoosh on a Dunk, it's just not natural. Throw that Dallas Cowboys looking star onto the side of each pair and some wonky color blocking and what you’re left with is a mess. -Ben Felderstein

Year: 2022

A Supreme Dunk collab used to be a guaranteed hit. But when you come out of the gate with something as good as the SB Dunk Lows from 2002 or SB Dunk Highs from 2003, it’s always going to be hard to recreate that type of energy. The brand should be applauded for continuing to try instead of just phoning it in year after year and churning out new colorways of its elephant and star clad designs from the 2000s. The problem with that is, creativity doesn’t always result in something as desirable. The brand’s latest attempt was a series of more simplistic SB Dunk Highs sporting OG colorblocking. Each was given a Supreme twist by way of “No Love” stitched text on the lateral toe and its often-used “By Any Means” slogan wrapping its way around the heel. This trio certainly isn’t offensive, but it also leaves a bit to be desired. Usually, Supreme’s problem is getting too unorthodox. But these pairs fall just a bit short. —Mike DeStefano

Year: 2018

Didn’t expect to see this one coming. The early-2000s running shoe, designed by Steven Smith, was dragged out of Nike’s vault in the O.G. colorway, flames and all, and had the Supreme logo slapped on it. Not bad if you’re into your sneakers that look like Hot Wheels. -Matt Welty

Year: 2017

Any time you’re starting with an Air Force 2 instead of an Air Force 1 [Ed. note: I don't agree with him at all], you’re already behind the 8 ball. Four colorways of this AF2 hit the market in 2017 including three jarring candy-pack looking creations that left a lot to be desired. The fourth and final “Baroque Brown” pair was a bit less offensive but is still considered a brick in the Supreme x Nike department if you ask me.  -Ben Felderstein 

Year: 2022

Nike Shox have never been cool. They feel more at home on the feet of a Jersey shore bro rocking an upside down visor than, say, a streetwear kid in New York City. But the reputation that the Shox hold in society wasn’t enough to stop Supreme from trying to make a cool version of their own. And to be honest, they sort of succeeded. Generally speaking, Shox still aren’t cool. But these are pretty nice in comparison to the pairs we remember lining the walls of Finish Line back in the day. Part of their success is certainly due to the timing of the release. These techy 2000s runners fall perfectly in line with some of the current footwear trends. The tonal colorways are also fairly inoffensive and the Supreme Shox pillars are a nice touch. Say what you want about Shox, but Supreme deserves some credit for making a completely irrelevant shoe in the sneaker world feel a bit special. —Mike DeStefano

Year: 2017

This shoe isn’t bad by any means. Some of the colors are too bright for many. Just not a hype shoe in the pantheon of what Supreme and Nike have done. The apparel is good, though. -Matt Welty

Year: 2017

People are going to like it because it’s a Comme des Garcons collab with Supreme on Air Force 1. What it really is: A white/white Air Force 1 with something screen printed on the side. Rushed and poor product. But the names sell it to hype fuck lords. And NBA players. -Matt Welty

Year: 2016

Unlike the brand’s highly-coveted Blazers from 2006, Supreme’s Blazer Low project from 2016 was not received with nearly the same amount of praise. Four pastel-colored suede pairs sitting on gum bottoms hit the market, but they aren’t anything special. If you merely want to say you own a Supreme item and you like colorful sneakers, you can score these for a little over retail right now. -Mike DeStefano

Year: 2020

Whether you want to admit it or not, part of the allure of any Supreme collab has always been its limited nature. If you miss out on Thursday morning then it's time to hit the aftermarket. That has always been the case, at least it was until 2020's Air Force 1 drop. Initially met with some apprehension for its "lazy" design, it's just some white and black Forces with a mini red Box Logo stamped on the lateral heel, customers warmed up to the idea once they'd been presented with all of the details. It was announced that both colorways would be sporadically replenished from season to season. Suddenly, Hanes T-shirts and boxers weren't the only Supreme items you could re-up on. Make sure you add a fresh pair of Uptowns to the cart too. -Mike DeStefano

Year: 2020

Supreme has made a habit in recent years of reviving lesser-seen Nike runners for its projects—take 2018's Zoom Streak Spectrum Plus or 2016's Air Max 98 collabs as prime examples. But its most recent release decided to use a retro runner that has been back on shelves in a multitude of colorways for the past couple of years, the Air Max Plus. These aren't like the pairs you will see on the wall at your local Foot Locker, though. Supreme made its trio of AMPs feel special by tweaking the silhouette's TPU overlays to spell out "Supreme." The trio certainly isn't a bad offering, especially in comparison to some of its other recent output, but when pitting against Supreme's iconic archive it still finds itself sitting near the bottom half. -Mike DeStefano

Year: 2013

There was a lot of confusion what this sneaker was all about when it first leaked. It’s also the first and only time that Supreme would collaborate on a new Nike performance shoe. The catch? These Flyknit Lunar 1s, which were quite popular at the time and haven’t been re-released, came in a Nike SB box. But weren’t built up with Nike SB modifications. Odd? I thought so, too. -Matt Welty

Image via Supreme

Image via Supreme

Year: 2009

For its 2009 collaboration with Nike SB, Supreme offered up four colorways of the Bruin. Metallic Swooshes and “World Famous” branding on the heel made the pairs stand out from the average release of the low-top skate shoe. Some color schemes were better than others, but the project doesn’t necessarily do anything wrong either. For a Supreme collab that's a little more under the radar, this might be the one to go with. -Mike DeStefano

Year: 2019

The Supreme x Air Max 95 is based off an ultra-luxe version of the shoe that was made and released in Italy in the 2000s. They were expensive back then. Supreme upped the ante and made them $500 this time around. Price tag aside, the shoes are solid. -Matt Welty

Year: 2021

Following a lukewarm offering in 2019, Supreme decided to nod to one of its most celebrated projects for its latest Nike SB collab. The result is four colorways of the SB Dunk Low that share details with its 2003 SB Dunk High release like colorful croc leather overlays and gold stars covering the quarter panel. The source material helped define an era of sneakers. The 2021 project, while nostalgic, doesn’t hit quite the same despite being one of Supreme’s better offerings in recent years. The brown option feels very appropriate given current trends, but other options like a loud slime green don’t quite hit the mark like the originals did 18 years ago. —Mike DeStefano

Year: 2018

The first Supreme x Comme des Garcons Air Force 1 wasn’t good. This shoe, with its split design, is infinitely better. -Matt Welty

Year: 2017

This is a love-it-or-hate-it shoe for many people. The Youth tends to like the shoe, because they probably don’t know better and it’s “hype,” and us older heads tend to hate it, because, well, it kind of sucks. The kids win out sometimes. Hate to see it. - Matt Welty

Year: 2007

Supreme bringing back the Air Trainer 2 TW was supposedly influenced by Tommy Rebel, the shrill-voiced man with an extensive collection of vintage Ralph Lauren, North Face, and Nike from the documentary Just for Kicks who wouldn’t move out of his parents’ house. With that said, the shoe is true dive into the late ‘80s/early ‘90s that inspired much of Supreme’s obsession with New York City and sneaker culture. -Matt Welty

Year: 2012

Elephant print on the Nike SB Dunk Low just looks good. These don’t hold a candle to the original pairs, but it was still awesome to see Supreme bring back one of the biggest projects from its archive in a new way so many years later. If you still like bright red sneakers and want to shell out a little less money for a well-executed Supreme Dunk Low collab, this is the shoe for you. -Mike DeStefano

Year: 2015

In Supreme’s illustrious collaborative footwear history, the iconic skate brand has only teamed up with the Jordan Brand twice. One of those times the product came out really good, the other time it simply came out really bad. Having featured the really bad one earlier on, it’s time to focus on the positives. Available in three colorways you have the option to make a statement with the bold Desert Camo or keep it nice and simple with White or Black. -Ben Felderstein

Year: 2016

Not a lot of people expected Supreme to collaborate on an Air Max 98, and that’s part of what makes this shoe good. Even less would have guessed how great they design would turn out. Base them off the Prada Americas Cup, do them in patent leather, one pair in snakeskin, and the outcome was solid. -Matt Welty

Year: 2012

It’s hard to imagine a time when Supreme didn’t have its own Air Force 1, but it really wasn’t that long ago. The brand got its hands on the model for the first time in 2012, opting to work on the low-top variation of the sneaker. It came in gum-soled black, olive, and woodland camouflage colorways which were elevated through the use of authentic NYCO military fabric. The brand would later work on the Air Force 1 High and team with Comme des Garçons for various Air Force 1 Lows, but the OG still remains one of the best. - Riley Jones

Year: 2014

This is the first sneaker to release after the Foamposite caused Nike releases to be cancelled at the brand’s Manhattan shop. The formula was simple: An Air Force 1 Hi in white, red, and black with Supreme’s branding on the strap. Easy enough. And they were pretty good. Resale is quite high at the moment, too. -Matt Welty

Year: 2014

The Supreme x Nike Air Foamposite One makes this list mainly because of the hype around it. Personally? Could care less for the shoe. But many were surprised 1) That this shoe was real and 2) That it caused a literal riot with police cars in New York City. Most memorably, this was the sneaker that forever had in-store Supreme x Nike releases canceled. -Matt Welty

Image via Supreme

Image via Supreme

Image via Flight Club

Image via Flight Club

Image via Flight Club