Air Jordan 7 'Tinker Alternate': Celebrating MJ's Olympic Performances

It took four grueling years, but we're finally ready to shift back into Olympics mode. The 2016 Rio Games are here, giving USA Basketball a chance to add another medal into its vault.

Capitalizing on the festivities, Nike and Jordan Brand sprung into action by planning to release the Air Jordan VII "Tinker Alternate" on Saturday. 

Image courtesy of Nike

The sneaker pays respect to Michael Jordan’s days with Team USA, spanning from 1984 to 1992. In his two Olympic appearances, Jordan shone on the international stage, averaging 16.0 points, 3.4 assists and 3.1 steals per game. Both squads he played for wound up taking home gold.

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Nike went back and honored Jordan’s performance, creating a unique take on the Air Jordan VII he wore during the ‘92 Games in Barcelona, Spain, as part of the Dream Team.

Starting with a white base, lead designer Tinker Hatfield—the Jordan god himself—amalgamated navy blue stabs around the ankle, sidewalls and, in traditional Jordan VII fashion, also created deep pockets of color along the upper—an upper gorged with buttery fragments of leather.

Image courtesy of Nike

Complementing all of those white, blue and gold hues are red highlights, mainly splattered along the shoe’s sidewall. Together these colors successfully turn the Air Jordan VII “Alternate” into a wearable, flex-worthy basketball shoe littered with American pride.

Image courtesy of Nike

If you hone in a bit closer on the final product, you’ll notice two distinct features. First off, the tongue of the "Alternate" features a hybrid American flag design. Additionally, Jordan's Olympic numeral, nine, is featured on the heel of the shoe.

Hatfield's striking attention to detail breathes new life into the timeless silhouette.

This release comes at a time when Jordan Brand’s retro line has fallen into an abnormal place. Retros have seen a staggering drop-off in the hype department, as Alec Leach of Highsnobiety touched on.

“At one point, Nike, including Jordan Brand, accounted for 96 percent of the resell market. That number has dropped consistently and considerably since February 2015,” Leach penned.

Image courtesy of Nike

Jordan Brand's decision to release the VII “Tinker Alternate” from its sneaker mausoleum is a great way to shake things up with a fresh take on a classic shoe.

Be on the lookout Saturday for your chance to cop a clean pair of these Air Jordan Olympic stompers.

Image courtesy of Nike

All production information via Nike News unless noted otherwise.