Nike SB's Wildest Hybrid Returns: The Skate-ready Jordan 4

Finally, the Nike SB Jordan 4 is set to return. And this time, it's got a new "Midnight Navy" makeover.

Two years after Nike SB whipped the sneaker community into a frenzy with the Jordan 4 Pine Green, an instant sell-out that had people queueing around the block outside skate stores, a follow-up colorway is coming.

The skate sneaker has adopted navy blue paneling for its second release. It’s not quite the OG Military Blue colorway, but it’s mighty similar. 

And the similarities between this shoe and the OG Jordan 4 from 1989 go beyond just the colorway: it’s also in the shape of the shoe. Nike SB and Jordan tweaked the AJ4 design so that the shape around the toe box was more similar to that of the original ‘89 model. 

This update wasn’t made purely for aesthetic reasons (although, sneakerheads are notorious for moaning that the new-shape models don’t look as good), it’s to help the bubble-soled basketball shoe skate better. The new (well, old) toebox makes for a better flick according to Nike.

Other updates from Nike SB, the American sportswear giant’s skateboarding division, include flexible plastic detailing to make them more supple, zonal gum rubber on the outsole, and thicker materials.

"Skate and basketball may have lived in two parallel universes when the AJ4 first came on the scene, but the spirit of rebellion and style that MJ brought to the game is inherent to the DNA of skateboarding,” said James Arizumi, Global Senior Design Director, Jordan Brand Special Projects, when the first pair of Nike SB Jordan 4s were released.

Since they debuted in 2023, talk of a follow-up skateable AJ4 has been rife (including rumors of a possible varsity red release). But confirmation of a second Nike SB AJ4 colorway has now arrived via Virginia skate store Skate Supply.

Unfortunately, the store hasn’t provided a release date, but it has confirmed the navy blue-colored shoe is coming soon through an Instagram post. 

While we’ve seen the Jordan 4 mimic the shape of a skate shoe in recent years, this one is the real thing: it's a fully engineered skate shoe direct from the skate specialists at Nike SB. 

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