AJKO 1 – True Blue/Topaz Gold-Sail
When Nike launched the first signature model for their newly-signed star Michael Jordan, they knew it was going to be a hit – it had to be. Undoubtedly the one thing every kid in America was going to want was a pair of sneakers just like Mike, the only problem was that not every family could afford the $65 entry point.
The AJKO was priced at 1/3 of the AJ1 – a pretty good deal. Instead of full grain leather uppers the AJKO was made entirely of canvas, with bound edges across the panels which added a particularly refined finish to this price-conscious variant. Unfortunately Nike famed Air cushioning was still too expensive in ’85, resulting in the AJKO borrowing an outsole from the mid-cut Vandal.
This blue and yellow colourway references Laney Highschool, where Jordan attended from 1977 to 1981. As the legend goes, MJ didn’t make the cut for the varsity team in his sophomore year – being relegated to the junior team. This fuelled Jordan’s fire and ultimately set him on the path which we all know so well.
