Air Jordan 17 (XVII):

About Air Jordan 17 (XVII)

The Air Jordan 17 was released February 9, 2002. This was the first shoe released since Jordan’s 2nd return to the NBA playing for the Washington Wizards. The first color to release matched their jersey. Jordan is BACK! For a while, those who talked about a 3rd coming of Jordan were thought to be as crazy as the people who think Elvis, Tupac, and Biggie are still alive. Jordan proved all the skeptics wrong on September 25, 2001 when he announced he would return to the NBA and suit up as a Washington Wizard. Keeping the Cover The Air Jordan 17 design was said to be inspired by three things; “the fine details from an Aston Martin, the smooth lines and flow of a jazz solo and the long Air Jordan history of innovations in style” Well, if the Air Jordan 16′s were equipped with a gaiter/shroud that was removable and that would cover almost more than half of the shoe, the Air Jordan 17′s were no worse. With a removable midfoot cover you were once again given the power to choose whether or not the laces should be visible! Metal and CD But the midfoot cover was not everything. The Air Jordan 17 came with a Jumpman embossed metal carrying case. So, this was not your average shoe box. OK, we had seen this when the Japan exclusive Air Jordan I’s were released on January 1st 2001 but hey, now everyone could get one.But, believe it or not, it doesn’t stop there. In the lid of the carrying case a CD-rom could be found. Nike really knew how to make their customers happy! Overpriced? When you decide to add a metal case and a CD something tells you the production cost must rise quite a bit. This also seemed to be the case as the Air Jordan 17 had a retail price at $200. Retailers everywhere had problems convincing people that $200 for a pair of shoes was worth it and many retailers cut prices down to $160 which was the retail price of the Air Jordan 16. The Air Jordan 17 will be making a return in 2008, minus the suitcase.

Michael Jordan was President of Basketball Operations for the Washington Wizards. When the 2001-2002 season came, Michael resigned his position as President of Basketball Operations, but signed a player contract. Guess who’s back? Wilson Smith III designed the Air Jordan 17. Around the time sketching was started, Michael signed Michael Phillips the musician. So one key element to the Air Jordan XVII was from Jazz music. If you look on them you will notice molded in jazz notes. Also, inspirations for the shoe once again came from a car, this time being an Aston Martin. The soles were said to come from a golf course Michael played at. The Air Jordan XVII were nicely made, and they came equipped with a removable mid-foot strap, Zoom Air sole, dynamic-fit sleeve, hidden quick lace system, lace-locks, leather uppers and carbon-fiber sheath. When you purchased the Air Jordan 17, you got a nice metal carrying case and a CD. The price tag on the Air Jordan XVII had most people in shock, $200.00! The highest ever for a pair of Air Jordans. In 2002, when the Air Jordan XVII released, four colorways came out, which retailed for $200.00. Three low models came out, ($150.00) and three mules ($100.00).