Jordan 1 SE Low Barely Green W

Jordan 1 Low SE Barely Green 2021 Release

The Air Jordan 1 is the trainer that started it all, marking the beginning of the most iconic lineage of trainers in history. In many ways, it's responsible for launching modern-day trainer 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 trainers 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 trainer endorsement at the time. Nike made him the face of its growing presence in basketball, and gave him his own trainer line - called Air Jordan.

Jordan 1 Low SE Barely Green

The Jordan 1 Low SE Barely Green is the first Michael Jordan signature trainer that uses colours and textures to tell a unique story. The canvas of this low-profile trainer is mint green, Barely Green, on the collar, perforated toe, and mid-panel. The same shade of mint green is found on the eyelets and forefoot, too. On the suede heel, a slightly darker mint-green colour is used. The signature Swoosh is black, and the "wings" logo on the heel is embroidered pink while the nylon tongue is white. The light arctic pink shoelaces add a vibrant contrast. The casual women's Air Jordan 1 Barely Green is finished with a "23" and Jumpman logo.