The Jordan Brand: Why Sneakerheads Die Broke

So it looks like the XI/XII pack is going to be Bred/Taxi. I was really hoping for a Concord/Playoff combo, but this is still easily the best countdown pack in the series, and the only one even remotely worth the massive MSRP.



With that, I give you my top 5 Jordans. I’m not really that big of a Jordan head, but I’d be willing to sell my soul for some of these.

5) Playoff XII



These are a piece of work, and I was straight praying that they would be in the upcoming XI/XII countdown pack. If I’m not mistaken, MJ wore these en route to his first championship since coming out of retirement. A lot of kids had the red/black ones back when we were in the 6th grade, but I was way too busy salivating over the Air Max Penny to bother. Remember the days when we were only allowed to have one pair? It’s good to have a job.

4) Nick Anderson X



I was a pretty huge Orlando fan in the 90s, and believe it or not, it was Nick Anderson, not Shaq, who was my second favorite player behind Penny Hardaway. People will never forget Nick’s 4 missed free throws in game 1 of the 94-95 Finals, but not everyone remembers that this dude could score with the best of them. The Chicago Bulls edition with the 45 stitched on the side is probably be the most coveted incarnation of the X, but there’s just something about the Anderson PE that calls out to me. It’s essentially impossible to find, but we can all dream.

3) True Blue III.



Widely recognized as Tinker Hatfield’s first contribution to the Jordan brand, the III came out before I was in the game, so I won’t even pretend that I’m an expert on them. I was probably about 4 when they dropped, so I don’t think that I was really into anything besides Sesame Street and chocolate milk. What I do know is that they remain a really great looking sneaker to this day, and that the elephant print featured on the shoe opened a lot of doors for the wild designs we see now.

2) Quentin Richardson XIII.



Aside from the XX3, the XIII remains my favorite incarnation of the Jordan to date, and Q absolutely blew my mind when he rocked these player exclusives during the 04-05 season. What’s funny is that Q apparently thought he was Jordan when he wore these, as he went on to set a Suns franchise record for the most 3-point field goals attempted (and made) in a single season. I’m probably one of the few people out there who’d lose it over some orange Jordans, but as a Suns fan, it don’t get much better than these. I still can’t help but feel that the hologram is a little corny, but the design of the XIII is just so sleek and clean.

1) Old Love XX3



Or whatever they're called. I’m probably in the minority here, but this is my favorite makeup of the XX3. The titaniums are incredible, but it just seems fitting that the cleanest XX3 is a Chicago Bulls colorway. The new trio set to release later this month (UNC/CHI/Motorsports) are beautiful as well, but I guess I'm just a really big fan of white. Simply put, the XX3 is such an incredible shoe that it barely matters what colors you throw onto the thing. It’ll set you back $185 to land a pair, but the shoe’s intricate balance of cutting edge & classy is simply unparalleled. Arguably the most stunningly crafted sneaker ever made, Jordan or otherwise.