story

Yo! What up? Where are we? In New York City! Still rolling everybody, once we're clear on the helicopter we'll do it again. I'm Hugo. This is Arielle, footwear colour designer over at Jordan Brand. This is Behind the Design.

We are about to get into the Jordan 1 'Shattered Backboard'. Let's get it. So this is the 'Shattered Backboard' 2025 AJ1 High OG. What you see here is a bring-back from 2015. You get all the premium materials you had then, and even better now.

When these came out, I remember everybody was going crazy. What's the history behind the shoe, and most importantly, the name? It was actually in 1985 when MJ broke the backboard in his exhibition game in Italy. Shout-out Italy. The colour and material were inspired by the jersey that he wore.

The hot topic is the leather. This shoe turned everyone into a leather expert. That was the first thing that people spoke about. After that, everyone wanted every single pair of Jordans to feel like the 'Shattered Backboard'. Everyone was comparing this …

… to, like, their car leather. It's so soft and buttery because it's actually an aniline leather, and since it goes through a more natural process, it allows for the soft characteristics of the original leather to remain intact. I wish you guys could feel this leather, man.

It smells delicious, man. I want to eat it. And I heard that this is the first time this shoe is being ran in full sizes. You are correct. Dads. Mums. Whole family. The picture is going to go crazy. Thank you for coming out. Absolutely. All the way from Portland, baby. Yeah.

Behind the Design: AJ1 High OG 'Shattered Backboard'