A pair of retro Jordans drop seemingly every weekend throughout the course of a year. Completely new colorways debut, OG’s return and occasionally personality-filled non-OG retros all make their ways back into stores. Historically accurate OG retros are always fun – we all love those, but in the same breath consumers expect new iterations too. (New) non-OG colorways can be hit or miss; it’s funny how sneakerheads tiptoe a thin line between what’s ‘cool’ and what’s not. In recent memory some well received completely new colorways like the Bel Air 5’s and various colored toe 1’s; but others like the Radio Raheem 2’s and wool 3’s were met with lukewarm enthusiasm.
Resistance to change isn’t new in the retro Jordan game. In the early 2000’s when Jordan Brand started retroing past models in new colors for the first time they commonly ended up in outlets and heavily discounted. The popularity of such models like the Thunder 4’s and Chrome 8’s weren’t realized until years later to the point where the return of (shoes like) the Thunder 4’s in 2012 created much fanfare and hype. This all plays into the “you don’t miss them until their gone” phenomena; and most collectors are happy that older retros don’t return (the people typically happy about this are those whom already have ____ shoe in their possession). Lets keep using the Thunder 4 retros as our example: the resell value of the original 2006 Thunders plummeted, resulting in all those deadstock pairs hoarders had in their closets being worth almost half of what they were a year prior. But rereleasing the shoes opened up the door for a new generation of sneakerheads to get their hands on something they’ve only seen on feet or in-stores at prices they couldn’t afford and that’s a good look for the sneaker game. With that said, lets take a look back at our top-5 non-OG Jordans we would like to see make a comeback. *To qualify the retro needed to release before 2012 and no collabs.*
Air Jordan 11 Retro, Cool Grey (2001, 2010)
The Cool Grey 11’s are a shoe beloved by most of the sneaker community. Replacing the ballistic mesh uppers of the OG 11s with brushed suede(like) was an instant hit. It’s been so long since we’ve seen the Cool Greys release that even the 2010 retros are starting to yellow and separate. Earlier in 2018 we received a Cool Grey 11 Low Retro but we want the originals to return!
Air Jordan 7 Retro, Flint Grey (2006)
Bold colorblocking helps define a lot of Jordan retros and we eat them up like hotcakes. In 2006 JB took one of their most “blockable” designs, the Jordan 7 and dressed in in high contrast grey and white with great success (kinda like the Carmine 6’s just… grey… and not the same shoe lol). Subtle hits of varsity purple and black takes the Flint Grey 7’s to the next level, bring ’em back!!!
Air Jordan 4 Retro, Mist Blue (2006)
You’re probably already noticing a grey theme here but the color just works so well on Jordans that it’s almost baffling why more original releases didn’t come in the color. This Jordan 4 mixes mist blue and gold leaf accents with a predominately grey base. These are sure to snap necks on the street and fetch top dollar on the secondary market so a fresh retro would be happily accepted.
Air Jordan 2 Retro, Candy Pack (2010)
We’re grouping three Jordan 2’s into one slot here but since they all released together we figured it was fitting. 2010’s Holiday Season saw a resurgence in the Jordan 2 (like we get every decade or so) with four releases within a three month period. The sweetest of these releases were the Candy Pack that came in red, green and yellow. With the recent popularity in tonal and color saturated retros these three would fit right in with today’s top drops.
Air Jordan 4, Lightning (2006)
Every shoe so far has been from 2006 or 2010 and our top shoe is no different. The Lightning 4’s have been rumored to retro every year… for the last five years but every time we’re left hanging. Most of us thought the Lightning would come around the same time as the Thunders because of their similar spots in Jordan history. Dressed in tour yellow from ankle to sole with touches of black and yellow makes these kicks instantly recognizable. Please, please, please retro these soon Jordan Brand, PLEASE!
Aaron Nojima
Robbie Falchi