Image via Complex Original
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Yesterday in Miami, Dwyane Wade and the Jordan Brand officially introduced the Jordan Fly Wade 2. There were the shoes, which looked great; and members of the media trying to dunk off a trampoline, which looked not-so-great. Seeing that said event coincided with the $145 shoe hitting retail, we figured we'd try and answer any lingering questions you may still have (remember this?).
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1) HEY, DIDN'T WE TALK ABOUT THESE ALREADY? Well, yeah, some. Jordan actually unveiled the Fly Wade 2 for the first time back in October when they held the first official Flight Forum in Beaverton. The Wade 2 played the part of "Fly Over," something we'll be seeing a lot more of when the next big shoe drops. WHAT NEXT BIG SHOE? Er, nevermind. TEASE. Yep.
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2) SO, IS THIS COLOR OUT YET? Nope. Gotta wait until March 2012. Just the black/red for the time being. These look good, though, right? YEAH. THEY'RE PRETTY LOW, TOO. Yup. One eyelet above a low-cut. They're lower on top and on the bottom. WHAT DO YOU MEAN? The midsole is thinner, so your foot is closer to the ground. The upper is built on a slimmer last, too, so everything is just lower and snugger.
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3) IT LOOKS SUPER-VENTILATED, TOO. Yeah — thanks to the next phase of Hyperfuse. We'll get into a that a little more later. Basically it's a full synthetic upper, too (four layers for the Hyperfuse), which makes it something like a super-breathable Foamposite shoe that happens to weigh 12 ounces. NOT BAD. Nope. Apparently they're an ounce lighter than the first Fly Wade, which means you can disregard this.
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4) OOH, PRETTY. Yeah, these are supposed to be his Christmas Day shoes — and, well, his opening day shoes too, we guess. STUPID LOCKOUT. Indeed. The pair he showed us in Miami had green shoestrings, but he didn't seem sold on the idea. THE MATTE FINISH IS NICE, THOUGH. For sure. We'll talk more about that later, too. IS THERE ANYTHING YOU CAN TALK ABOUT NOW? Um, how 'bout them Angels?
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5) HEY WAIT, WHY ARE YOU SHOWING ME A PICTURE OF A CAR? You know athletes and their cars. Dwyane pointed out that the two most important things to a guy — especially a pro athlete guy making millions of dollars — are his shoes and his car. So it makes sense one would be inspired by the other. SURE. And you don't want a car with laces. Dwyane talked a lot about Aston Martins and matte finishes. So the sleek look and finish were incorporated into his shoe.
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6) POOR BRANDON RUSH. Well, at least there's no "after" photo. SO WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH ANYTHING? Breathability. HOW? I'll tell you if you shut up for a second. FINE. Another thing Dwyane talked about a lot was sweat. And how he produces a lot of it. HOW MUCH? Enough to go through three pairs of sneakers in one game. EW. Right. So the Fly Wade 2 is not only ventilated heavily, but it's not all that absorbent. So he shouldn't get weighed down much even if he only plays in one pair per game.
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7) PRETTY BASIC OUTSOLE. Well, except for the fact that they stripped away even more rubber from the midfoot. TRUE. That outsole rubber is heavy (comparatively speaking, anyway) so it makes sense to take it away where you don't need it and add it where you do. This colorway just helps accent the split. And you'll notice the outsole tread wraps over the midsole on the inside and just extends into an outrigger on the outside.
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8) AH YES, THAT MAKES IT CLEARER. Yup. Just a big TPU shank and a Phylon carrier in the heel. AND THE LUNARLON. Hey, we'll get to that... LATER, I KNOW.
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9) CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE LUNARLON NOW? Sure. Like we said back in October, the Fly Wade 2 isn't really an "Air Jordan" at all. It features a basketball-specific, edge-to-edge Lunarlon midsole, which in practice is super-comfortable and responsive. Combine that with the glovelike fit of the one-piece upper (there's a "dog bone" foam heel pad in there that's amazing), and stability is off the charts.
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10) THAT TONGUE LOGO IS HUGE. Well, as Dwyane pointed out, the Jumpman may actually be bigger. He mentioned he'd have to talk to someone about that. HE WAS KIDDING, RIGHT? Er, for someone on the design team's sake, we hope so.
