Adidas Gifted Michael Jordan the US Market’s First $100 Leather Shoes, Says Former Executive

Michael Jordan and Nike have been inseparable since the beginning of his NBA journey. But there was a time when MJ shared a close relationship with Adidas as well. Gary Stokan, who was an Adidas executive trying to sign Jordan during the 1980s, recently revealed that the latter used to wear the German brand’s shoes off-the-court during his NCAA days with the North Carolina Tar Heels.

The Peach Bowl Inc. CEO sat down with 11Alive’s Reggie Chatman to discuss Jordan’s relationship with Adidas. During the 1984 Olympic trials, Stokan presented Jordan with the first leather basketball shoes in the US market worth $100. The then UNC guard loved the leather shoes and cherished the feel of Adidas sneakers on his feet.

Stokan said,

“Michael Jordan, I had him wearing Adidas all throughout practice and around campus at North Carolina. In 1984, I gave him the first $100 pair of leather basketball shoes and told him to wear that up at the Olympics trials in Bloomington, Indiana where Bobby Knight was gonna be the Olympics coach and Michael loved our shoes.”

Jordan indeed was very inclined to join Adidas before he joined Nike. He wanted to rock their shoes during his NCAA years, but UNC Tar Heels mandated Converse shoes. Therefore, he didn’t get to wear Adidas officially until the 1984 Olympics.

But then a few months later he opted to sign with Nike. There were a couple of major reasons why he went that way. Adidas’ execs in Germany(then West Germany) were unwilling to provide him with a contract close to what Nike had promised. 

MJ’s mother Deloris Jordan also prompted him to sign with Nike. Her foresight was indeed on-point. On October 26, 1984, MJ inked a five-year, $2.5 million deal with the brand, an amount that Adidas declined to match.

At the time, it was the only NBA shoe contract that transcended the $1 million mark. The decision would haunt Adidas in the long run. Jordan’s shoes would soon become a brand in and of itself. 

After the immense success of his Air Jordan shoe line, the Chicago Bulls legend would get his subsidiary operation in the form of the Jordan brand within Nike.