Jordan 1 Mid Cool Grey 2015

Jordan 1 Mids in Cool Grey (2015): Ultimate Air Technology

The Air Jordan 1 is the sneaker that started it all, marking the beginning of the most iconic lineage of sneakers in history. In many ways, it's responsible for launching modern-day sneaker culture as a whole—and it almost didn't happen.

History of Air Jordan 1

As the story goes, the year was 1984, and Chicago Bulls' rookie Michael Jordan was a hot commodity for endorsement deals, with sneakers naturally being paramount.

Jordan had just come off a stellar college basketball season at the University of North Carolina. He wore Converse and was a personal fan of Adidas, so he took meetings with both companies, but they never reached a deal. It seems strange today, but at the time, Michael Jordan hated Nike—so much so that he refused to take a meeting with them.

He was persuaded by his mother, Deloris Jordan, to visit the Nike campus in Oregon and listen to their pitch. His plan was to go through the motions to appease his parents and agent but he ultimately left with a contract unlike any other.

Rather than walking in the shadows of established athletes like Magic Johnson and Larry Bird (which may have been the case had he signed elsewhere), Michael Jordan shone in the Nike limelight. He was paid more than any other athlete with a sneaker endorsement at the time. Nike made him the face of its growing presence in basketball, and gave him his own sneaker line—called Air Jordan.

Jordan 1 Mid Cool Grey 2015

Infused with ultimate Air technology, these Jordan 1 Mids give off icy grey vibes. The leather upper features solid dark grey with a white pop in the Jordan wings logo on the side of the mid top ankle. The sole features solid clean white in a swirled design. The toe includes small punctures for breathability while the laces stretch for ultimate comfort. The foam insoles only add to the mix. The Jumpman logo appears in the same muted colors on the tongue and back of the ankle while the Nike name also appears on the arch of the sole.