Image via Complex Original
Illinois, and more specifically Chicago, is synonymous with the Jordan Brand. The brand may have been born in Beaverton but it lived in the Chi. The Jordan Brand set a precedent to every athlete that graced a basketball court within Chicago. When you step on that court, it’s more than a game—it’s a part of your life. It's that sentiment that breeds champions. The brand left the hallowed city with six rings and a monument outside of its arena that reminds everyone what dominance is.
The influence of the brand that represents the greatest athlete ever has spanned across generations, establishing a core set of values that only an athlete from Chicago can truly understand. While most people watched it, they lived it.
One of those young athletes is Jabari Parker. Coming from the South Side, Jabari grew to be one of the most dominant basketball players not named Michael in the state's history. He led his high school team, Simeon Career Academy, to four straight state championships. He didn’t even give someone a chance to take the game from him, as he will go forever unbeaten when it most matters in his high school career.
It was this basketball greatness that led him to be the perfect match to become the next Jordan Brand endorsed athlete. A rare honor that has only been given out to a select few.
It was for that reason I decided to imagine what Jabari Parker’s first signature basketball shoe could look like for the revered Jordan Brand.
Brett Golliff is a contributor to Complex and a designer. You can follow him on Twitter here.
Inspiration
Jabari’s game is solid as a rock, but he’s agile as a jet. He will man you up with his strength and size but immediately explode and breakdown within a single movement. It was these attributes that inspired me to look at a blending of natural resources and man-made materials. Materials that both support and flex, that visually show speed, movement and intensity. It was important that his shoe was solid enough to maintain him but responsive enough to take flight with him.
Branding
Jabari is a silent ambassador of the game and now the Brand. It’s important that his logo speaks for him. The development of Jabari’s branding went through many stages. The iterations focused on emphasizing the dynamic style of play and the iconic nature that he grew up. Chicago is known for its presence of immaculate architecture. Like the architecture that surrounded his youth, Jabari’s logo lays out the foundation for his championship building.
Logo
Jabari’s branding is a combination of his game, defined style, persona, optimistic outlook on life and most importantly, him. The logo embraces his initials in a faceted nature while combining to reveal his court identity, the number 12. The styling of the logo is sharp and chiseled like his game and projects forward to his bright future at the Brand and in the NBA.
Initial Sketches
The shoe had to be strong yet light, just like Jabari. The beginning stages focused on creating a graphic that traveled through the shoe in a sharp but purposeful manner. Focusing on creating a look that wasn’t just bold, but functional.
Refining
As the design was refined the materials came together to embrace being solid yet agile. The shoe combines the best technological offerings Jordan Brand has ever offered in a single package: Foamposite, FlightPlate, and PerformanceWoven. These materials combine to bring a solid presence with a soft and supple feel.
FlightPlate
The FlightPlate made its debut in 2012 on the Air Jordan XX8. The new flagship piece reinvigorated the Air Jordan line with a platform approach that aids in every aspect of the athlete’s game. When Jabari takes off, it provides a solid stand to propel him forward. When Jabari takes his game 180° in a new direction, it supports him and keeps him from losing valuable energy. Most importantly, the FlightPlate absorbs and launches Jabari to new heights as it takes the energy from every step and puts it back into his foot for taking off.
PerformanceWoven
PeformanceWoven elevates the game to new heights as it literally allows the Brand to tune the upper of the game shoe to the exact specifications of each individual athlete. The upper takes advantage of the warp and weft technique of PerformanceWoven to create channels that absorb and redirect energy. The channels redirect the energy that Jabari is putting into his shoes on the court back into his game to help support and aid him naturally.
CarbonVeil
The upper of the shoe features a technique completely new to the footwear industry: a veil of carbon fiber. By compressing recycled carbon fiber down to the most minimal height, a mere one millimeter, it allows the carbon to become flexible and take shape of the material it's bonding to. Because it is so thin and flexible, it is also not as rigid, allowing it to absorb more without stress. Its use on Jabari’s shoe has it following the direction of the PerformanceWoven channels, creating a network of strength and flexibility.
Jordan Brand JP12
The Jordan Brand JP12 started long before Jabari Parker was a Chicago legend. It started in 1984 when Michael stepped foot in the city of the Chi. It was his winning ways that would be passed down from generation to generation and it was his dominant career that inspired the future.
Jabari is the most heralded youth athlete to ever sign to the brand and his product is a representation of the future of his domination.
Aesthetically, the shoe is sharp but rigid, light but dominant. It shows forward movement to match the optimistic outlook Jabari has on life. It features details and materials that meet the exact specifications of the greatest athlete ever. It hones in on every specific detail that is Jabari’s game, thus allowing him to manipulate his competitors to playing his game.
The JP12 is a blending of science and nature with a dominant heritage. It provides a strong foundation for Jabari Parker to take flight into his NBA career.