Baseball Air Jordans

The Original Air Jordan IX was released in November 1993. The Air Jordan IX is influenced by Japanese design and is very minimalist. A rising sun was placed on the back of the Air Jordan IX along with the Jumpman symbol. This was the first Air Jordan model to be released after Michael Jordan had retired from basketball. Michael Jordan never played a single basketball game with this model. Instead, the model was redesigned in the form of baseball cleats. Michael actually used this model while playing minor-league baseball.

Different Languages On The Sole.

The Air Jordan IX featured with dynamic-Fit inner bootie, encapsulated Air-Sole unit (forefoot), large volume Air-Sole unit (heel), polyurethane midsole and “one-pull” lacing system. The sneaker had a lot of details and a large 23 was stitched on the back of the shoe. The outer sole featured symbols and languages of numerous countries. The words are:

Left Shoe
Uhuru (Swahili) – “Independence”
Cвобода (Russian) – “Freedom”
Cпорт (Russian) – “Sport”
Athletisch (German) – “Athletic”
Muundaji (Swahili) – “Hope”

Right Shoe
Intenso (Italian) – “Intense”
Liberté (French) – “Freedom”
Anmutig (German) – “Graceful”
Fuerza (Spanish) – “Force”
Dédié (French) – “Dedicated”

Air Jordan IX In the NBA As Player Samples

Although Michael Jordan did never wore the Air Jordan IX in an NBA game, other NBA players wore the Air Jordan IX. Known as player samples, these Air Jordan IX’s were produced for certain NBA superstars. Some player samples even removed the number 23 to insert the name of the player wearing the sneaker. Some of these players include Kendall Gill with the number 13, Eddie Jones and Mitch Richmond with the number 2.

Immortalized in a Statue

The Air Jordan IX was the shoe chosen for Michael Jordan’s legendary statue outside of the United Center in Chicago. Tinker Hatfield chose the Air Jordan IX as the shoe for the statue of Michael Jordan because the shoe represented Michael Jordan as a global superstar.

A brief appearance in Space Jam

The white/black version of the Air Jordan IX was featured in the 1996 movie Space Jam. It appeared in one scene. The original Air Jordan IX had a total of four models.

Air Jordan IX In The Media

Air Jordan IX Commercial – Johnny Kilroy I & II

Air Jordan IX Commercial – Johnny Kilroy III