The Air Jordan XV Retro Gets Deconstructed

January 24, 2017October 7, 2019

W-O-W. Really, wow. I’m not really sure what was expected from a Retro of the most hated Jordan model ever (although a few of us here actually liked the design), but it sure wasn’t this.

Our friends at fastpass took apart the latest edition of the Jordan XV and to say it is disappointing is an understatement. As you look at the images below, you will notice something important is missing.

Now, I’m not saying this was a pinnacle of design and performance for Jordan Brand; matter of fact, the fit was sloppy, heel support was too stiff, and you could actually feel the forefoot Zoom unit moving under your foot in the midsole — yes, while you were playing, the Zoom would shift and turn under foot. Well, seems Jordan Brand solved that problem with the XV Retro. Who says they don’t listen?

In case you haven’t looked yet, or missed it: WHERE IS THE FOREFOOT ZOOM?!?!

Honestly, this may be the worst of the downgrading happening to Jordan Brand models lately. To take a model that is already almost universally reviled, knowing the only thing pushing the sales of the Retro is hype and the desire to have a complete collection, and modify it this way is inexcusable. To raise the price to $190 and remove the one redeeming feature of the original is a joke. To say you get what you pay for is definitely not the case here, as I paid less for more 18 years ago.

Check the images below and let us know if you grabbed a pair and what you think of them, especially now that you have see these pics. The good people at fastpass even did us a favor and compared the midsoles from the last Retro of the XV — very interesting indeed.