Release Date: Saturday, June 27

Style: 555088-005

Color: Black/Starfish-Sail

Price: $160

As every week brings another 30th anniversary Jordan release referencing some aspect of Michael Jordan's life, like his high school, his minor league baseball team, his car, his nights in Barcelona; you might be thinking, "Is there anything left in this man's history that isn't on a shoe?" 

The answer to that question lies in the small town of Trieste, Italy. In the summer of 1985 Michael Jordan, fresh off his rookie season and riding high on the success of the debut of the Air Jordan 1, traveled to the boot-shaped country on a promotional tour at the behest of The Swoosh. On August 25 the tour rolled into Trieste, where MJ played in a Nike exhibition game with Italian pros. Wearing a black and orange uniform with his customary 23 on the back, Jordan drove the lane and took off from the bottom of the circle for one of his soaring dunks, and then... CRASH!!! A shower of glass rained down on Michael and the men he just posterized, remnants of a backboard shattered from the force of His Airness' throwdown. An act usually reserved for behemoths like Darryl Dawkins and Shaquille O'Neal, the backboard busting power of the wiry guard shocked all in attendence. Jordan went on to score 30 points after the backboard was replaced and finished up his Italian tour, leaving the story of the broken backboard in the Tuscan hills.

Lost to history until 2008, when a clip of the dunk surfaced on youtube, this glass-breaking oddity has existed outside of the official narrative of Michael Jordan, until now. On Saturday, Jordan Brand will drop the Air Jordan 1 Retro High OG "Shattered Backboard" to commemorate this nearly forgotten moment in MJ history. The premium leather upper is patterned after the orange and black jersey Jordan wore that fateful night and color-blocked similar to the "Black Toes", with orange taking the place of the red on the ankle collar, heel cap, toebox, and outsole. The nylon tongue features the Nike Air tag found on all original Jordan 1's, as well as the Jordan Wings logo on the ankle. Finally, the theme is driven home by the insoles, which feature a graphic of a rim surrounded by shattered glass.

These are extremely limited, and will only be available by raffle at our South Street, Philadelphia location. Sign up for the raffle at the store until Thursday night. Winners will be notified on Friday. Good luck.