History and Top Models of the Jordan 17

The Jordan 17 was launched when Michael Jordan came out of retirement for the second time during his NBA career. At the time, he was working as the owner and president of basketball operations for the Washington Wizards. He stepped down as president of basketball operations to play for the Wizards during the 2001–2002 season.

In February 2002, during the NBA All-Star Weekend, the Jordan 17 was released for retail. Ten versions of the sneakers were launched in the first year, including three standard colorways, three low-tops, three mules, and one 17+. The OG standard colorways include College Blue, White/Red, and Black/Black.

The College Blue colorway consists of a white leather upper and TPU college blue accents at the arch and toe guard. Black lines the collar lining and part of the midfoot cover. These Jordans feature a Lycra foam collar, a blow-molded Max Air unit, and a TPU heel counter. They're also constructed with full-length shank plates.

The forefoot Air is tuned, which means that they automatically adjust the air level inside. This was the first time that the Jordan line used tuned forefoot Air. The Jordan 17 also uses a dynamic fit sleeve, hidden quick-lacing system, variable-width lacing, and lace locks.

A croc-skin panel dresses the heel of the OG 17+. This colorway also featured copper accents. The sneaker's upper, tongue, and outsole are white. They contrast with the black croc-skin panel, TPU heel, and midfoot. Royal lace locks and black at the toe complete the look of this unique colorway.

Some of the shoe technology seen in the Jordan 17 was new to the product line. These groundbreaking features were blow-molded air, a heel stabilizer, and a full-length shank plate.

Other OG colorways include:

• White/Lightning All-Star Low

• Black/Chrome Low

• White/University-Blue/Black/Chrome Low

• White/Red Mule

• White/Black Mule

• Black/Metallic-Silver Mule

The low-cut models are almost the same as the mid-cut. They even have the dynamic fit sleeve, albeit in a lower cut. The mules are clog-like versions of the silhouette.

Inspiration for the Jordan 17

Wilson Smith, the Jordan 17's designer, took inspiration from jazz music, Aston Martin cars, and golf. Jazz is characterized by smooth, flowing notes. In addition to aiming to incorporate that into the design and performance of the sneakers, he added music notes to the lace cover.

Smith worked on getting the outsoles to resemble the greens, fairways, and sand traps of a golf course. When you look at the herringbone traction pods, you may think of an aerial view of golf courses.

As a nod to Michael being a businessman, the mid-top sneakers came in suitcase-like boxes. A CD-ROM with Michael's commercials and other marketing content was also packaged with the shoes.

The Jordan 17 brought back lace locks, a feature that hadn't been used since the Jordan 6. Smith also designed the lace covers to be smaller than on the 16. The lace covers are optional on the 17 mids.

Premium leather was used for creating the uppers of the 17 Mids and Lows. These sneakers also feature Zoom Air in the forefoot and standard blow-molded Air units in the heel. For extra support, they contain full-length carbon fiber shank plates. A semi-transparent TPU heel covers the heel and midfoot. There is a bumper at the heel as well. Smith arranged the eyelets so that you can spell out XVII if you want to when you lace up.

Michael Jordan wasn't the only NBA player to don Jordan 17s on the court in 2002. Ray Allen and Mike Bibby received their own Player Exclusives because they are Nike athletes. Kobe Bryant is another NBA player who wore the 17+ iteration.

Michael was only able to play in 60 games during the season because of a knee injury. Yet, he still led his team in points, steals, and assists. He also became the fourth NBA player in history to score a total of 30,000 points during his career.

Top 3 Jordan 17 Sneakers

Although Michael was playing for the Wizards, some of the top colorways are in the Bulls' colors. The 17+ variation is also popular for its croc-skin panel at the heel.

17+ Bulls

Michael Jordan scored his 30,000th career point while playing against his former team, the Chicago Bulls. The 17+ Bulls colorway represents this moment. It has a black upper with Gym Red eyelets, lace locks, Jumpmans, and accents on the croc-skin panel. The outsoles are white with black and Gym Red herringbone traction pods. The Jordan 17+ Bulls was released on May 29, 2016.

Black Metallic Silver

Black Metallic Silver, an OG colorway, has a black upper with metallic silver accents at the lace cover. Metallic silver colors the Jumpman and Jordan branding around the heel, too. The lace lock is clear and metallic silver. On the bottoms of the sneakers, the outsoles feature black and silver herringbone traction pods. The uppers are made of premium full-grain leather. These Jordan sneakers were released in March 2002.

Varsity Red

When Michael returned to the basketball court with the Wizards, he wore the OG Varsity Red. It features a white upper and Varsity Red details at the eyelets, lace cover, and lace lock. The TPU heel and midfoot are Varsity Red. White outsoles and charcoal at the eyelets complete the look. The Varsity Red colorway was launched in July 2002.

Upcoming Jordan 17 Sneakers

The Jordan 17 is a product line that doesn't see a lot of new releases. There aren't any 17 sneakers scheduled for a release in 2023.

Key Collaborations

The Jordan 17 line hasn't had many collaborations either. The Trophy Room and Lightning Retro Air Jordan sneakers are the key collaborations for this sneaker line. You can find these special colorways and other Jordan 17 models on eBay.

Trophy Room

Trophy Room, a boutique that was established by Michael Jordan's son, Marcus Jordan, has collaborated with Nike on several sneakers. The Trophy Room 17 Mid is one of their collaborations. One of the noticeable differences of this collaboration is it uses suede for the upper instead of leather.

The suede is in gray, contrasted by a black TPU heel and midfoot and metallic gold at the Jordan branding around the heel. A white outsole completes the colorway. Kid Cudi received a pair of these sneakers, which caused more buzz from sneakerheads who were anticipating the official launch. The Jordan 17 Trophy Room launched on October 28, 2017 and came with a T-shirt and a letter of thanks.

Lightning

SoleFly collaborated with the Jordan brand to bring out a Lightning colorway. It features a black upper with a yellow overlay and a yellow toebox. The Jordan branding around the heel is metallic silver, while the TPU heel and midfoot are black. Tumbled leather was used to create the upper, as well as an ostrich skin-inspired texture for the lace collar. SF branding embroidery appears on the heel. The exclusive also has a dynamic fit sleeve.

Only 2,300 pairs of the Jordan 17 SoleFly Lightning were released. They came out on February 16, 2018. Other details of the design include metallic silver eyelets and black outsoles. Inspiration for this colorway came from the Jordan 17 All-Star that Michael Jordan wore during the 2002 NBA All-Star Game. Some people call it the Low Lightning, but it's also referred to as the All-Star.