The 12 Greatest Air Jordan 12s Of All-Time
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Following what many would consider the greatest Air Jordan of all-time is no easy task. Even at the time, the Air Jordan 11 was instantly beloved for its genre-bending look that turned Tinker Hatfield’s creation into the icon that every basketball shoe has been chasing ever since: something that works perfectly on and off the court. When both Michael Jordan and Tinker call the 11 their favorite Air Jordan model, it’s hard to argue with those seals of approval. The ensuing years would only prove their instincts correct.
And yet, the Air Jordan 12 got pretty close. Ok, that’s just one person’s opinion, but the Air Jordan 12 was a worthy sequel to the 11, highlighted by several signature Michael Jordan performances. For the design, Tinker Hatfield went for a lateral approach so as to maintain the high-fashion energy. Inspired by women’s derby shoes from the 19th century, the mudguard stands out whether it serves as a color contrast or a match to the rest of the shoe. The rest of the upper gets its cues from Japan’s Rising Sun flag with the way stitches break up the multiple panels. Carried over from the Air Jordan 11 was the use of a carbon fiber support shank in the tooling and for the first time ever, Zoom Air was used for cushioning and added responsiveness.
When it comes to ranking the Air Jordan 12s, one thing you’ll notice is the lack of cacophonic colorways that will have you questioning your senses. To their credit, Jordan Brand has played it conservatively when it comes to the 12s outside of a few notable exceptions. And that’s not a bad thing because the formula or monochrome or two-tone for the 12s has worked for nearly 30 years now. When they do deviate from the script it’s shocking rather than mundane.
As the retro of the Air Jordan 12 French Blue is scheduled to drop this weekend, this ranking has us taking a look at a lot of the OGs that made the silhouette so special while highlighting some newer releases that are pushing the envelope ever so slightly.
12. Air Jordan 12 International Flight
In 2018, Jordan Brand dropped an ambitious 3-sneaker International Flight pack that tells the story of Michael Jordan’s various trips around the world (and Los Angeles) playing in charity games to spread the good word of the Jumpman. If the Air Jordan 1 Shattered Backboard (which is getting a retro in two weeks) had not dropped a few years prior, this easily could have been a four-pack. Anyways, in 1996, Michael Jordan landed in Japan and joined fellow All-Stars like Charles Barkley and Jason Kidd to play against local kids and pros for a Nike exhibition. Inspired by the 12s that MJ wore, the design is a dreamy ode to Japanese culture with a debossed koi fish scale pattern on the mudguard, a suede upper that uses a kimono print, and heel strips that swaps out the traditional “Quality Inspired By The Greatest Player Ever” message to “Air Jordan” in katakana.
11. Eastside Golf x Air Jordan 12 Low Golf
As the worlds of streetwear and golf circle each other in an attempt to expand the appeal of the game, Eastside Golf has emerged as one of the premiere brands who has addressed the balance of both sides desire to quite simply, wear cool stuff. In 2021, they reached a significant milestone when they teamed up with Jordan Brand on an Air Jordan 4 Golf collab that both sneakerheads and golfers can agree was a straight up banger. The follow up a year later gave us the Air Jordan 12s in both the standard and low cuts. The Low stands out for their unparalleled performance as a Jordan golf shoe and the judicious use of gold, which can be a problem if it's just slapped on a sneaker just for the sake of it.
10. Air Jordan 12 Field Purple
After spending a majority of his career with Nike Basketball that included several highly regarded signature shoes, Gary Payton made the switch to Jordan Brand as he chased after the NBA Championship that eluded him during his days in Seattle. One of those stops included a one-season stint with the Los Angeles Lakers that let Jordan Brand run wild with PEs galore for The Glove. As good as the Air Jordan 12 looked in black, white, and red, it’s fair to see they looked damn good in purple and gold as well. The past few years has seen Jordan Brand release both of the road pairs that GP wore in University Gold and Field Purple (sans “The Glove” text on the ankle) to the public, which is great and all, but that just means we are still missing the last piece of the puzzle: the home pair in white and University Gold.
9. Air Jordan 12 Obsidian
One way to differentiate an old sneakerhead from someone who recently got into the game is to ask them what’s the first Obsidian Air Jordan they can think of. While a young buck might bring up the Obsidian Jordan 1s in the high and low variants that have come out in recent years, the old head will almost certainly recall the iconic Air Jordan 12 colorway in Obsidian, White, and French Blue. Serving as a contrast to the other OGs in 1996, the Obsidian was a boon for kids on basketball teams who had blue as their primary colors and didn’t want their look to clash by wearing Flu Games. Not that this writer is drawing from personal experience or anything like that…
Note: The last time Obsidian 12s got a retro was in 2012. Kudos to Jordan Brand for having the patience, but that’s a long time in sneaker years. The world needs to remember where Obsidian Jordans started, just saying…
8. OVO x Air Jordan 12
Originally designed to be a “player exclusive” for Drake, the white pair of the OVO 12s eventually got an October 2016 release with the black pair to follow several months later in 2017. Decked out in premium leather and suede respectively, both the white and black colorways come with a leather mudguard that’s been given a stingray treatment to give it a unique look and OVO branding that can be found on the insoles and through the translucent panels on the outsole. As was the case with all limited Jordan retro drops during that time, the exclusive nature of these coupled with Drake at the peak of his star power made these a tough pair to chase down. It would be interesting to see what the public's reaction to this collab had dropped nearly a decade later after his various feuds with Pusha T, Kendrick Lamar, Kid Cudi, Megan Thee Stallion, and many more has turned Drake into the biggest heel in all of hip-hop.
7. PSNY x Air Jordan 12
While Drake and OVO were the first to explore the collaborative space of the Air Jordan 12, Public School New York really elevated the conversation when they dropped the first of several monochromatic 12s in late 2015. The monochromatic molded nubuck upper and leather sockliner gave the sneaker a premium feel that from afar made it look like it was chiseled from the finest marble. Despite the exorbitant $300 price tag, the collab would go on to become a hit for Jordan Brand and PSNY. A sequel pack would drop in 2017 with a trio of colorways that were a little more vibrant than the dark grey original, showing off the depth and versatility of the Air Jordan 12 that few are able to channel.
6. Air Jordan 12 Taxi
One of the first great sneaker nicknames came from this white and black Air Jordan 12 with hits of yellow and red. Actually, the yellow and red are doing a lot of the work because of their location on the carbon fiber plates on the outsole and on the heel tab. Despite not explicitly calling out taxis on the sneaker itself, people made the connection and it has stuck around through the years. It’s definitely a nickname perfect for the time period that it came out. It’s unlikely these would be called taxis in 2025 as rideshares have all but rendered the concept of taxis to a very select, very specific type of audience that still yearns for the old days of the yellow cabs.
5. Air Jordan 12 Cherry
During the Chicago Bulls second threepeat run with Michael Jordan, the team would debut their black alternate uniforms for select away games. The black base with red Bulls lettering and pinstripes would become instantly iconic as MJ paired them with a number of equally iconic Air Jordans, including the Cherry 12s. The combination only lasted for a handful of dates, but the images from those games have been repurposed for decades in everything from video games to trading cards to memes. A recent 2023 retro means people still have deadstock pairs fresh in the box, but give it a few years and the everyone will be clamoring for the next go around. And the images that will be used to promote that retro? You guessed it: MJ in the black alternate Bulls uniform.
4. Air Jordan 12 French Blue
Here’s a challenge for all the sneaker bloggers and social media accounts out there: try to write a post about the Air Jordan 12 French Blue without mentioning the late Kobe Bryant’s connection to them. Don’t bring up the fact that Kobe paired them up with the classic blue Los Angeles Lakers uniforms from the 1960s. Don’t allude to Kobe’s sneaker free agency season where he wore multiple Air Jordans or that arguably the French Blues was the pair that people remember the most from that time. Not that easy, is it? But there are other players who lay claim to the French Blues like Richard Hamilton, Gary Payton, and even Carmelo Anthony. Much like the Obsidian 12s, the blue is doing a lot of the work to make it stand out. It’s also arguably the most versatile and wearable 12s in casual settings since blue is so easy to pair up with plenty of fits.
3. Air Jordan 12 Melo
In a cosmic twist, the Air Jordan 12 Melo got a retro in the same year that Carmelo Anthony is set to be inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. A sneaker hall of famer by any metric, Melo’s rookie year was filled with player exclusives of the Air Jordan 12 that have yet to be made available to the public. Sneaker historians might quibble with the lack of the gold eyelets and the Melo branding on the ankle, but the clean white look paired up with Denver Nuggets blue that serves as an outline is more than enough to make that connection. And this also means that several years from now, Jordan Brand can release a “reimagined” version that includes the Melo callout and the gold eyelet.
2. Air Jordan 12 Flu Game
Put together any list of memorable Michael Jordan moments and the usual suspects will come up. Dunk Contest, A Spectacular Move, The Shot. Some of those moments have become the nickname of the sneakers that MJ wore at the time. But as legendary as say, The Last Shot 14s might be or the Space Jam 11s are, none are as tied to the hip as the Flu Game 12s. A stunning combination of black and red, they were on the feet of MJ as he suffered through food poisoning flu-like symptoms during Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals. Despite looking like someone who would rather be anywhere else but a basketball court, Jordan put on the defining performance of his career, scoring 38 points including the go-ahead shot that would leave the Chicago Bulls one win away from their fifth championship in franchise history. The actual Flu Game sneakers would become an historical artifact, selling for over a million dollars at its most recent auction. Thankfully, in a rare instance where $200 Jordans aren’t the worst thing in the world, the Flu Games have been brought back a number of times since the OG, keeping the resale value of these sneakers at a reasonable level.
1. Air Jordan 12 Playoffs
Michael Jordan did not invent the fist pump celebration. It’s something that’s been around sports and pop culture for years before he decided to simply raise his right hand and ball it up into a fist to celebrate his game-winning shot over Byron Russell in Game 1 of the 1997 NBA Finals. But the calm and calculated way that he did it inspired an entire generation of athletes to replicate the move. From Tiger Woods to Kobe Bryant to every tennis player in existence, many have tried but none have ever looked as cool. And on Jordan’s feet were the Playoff 12s. Much like the Flu Games, a recent run of retros have kept the shoe within the level of affordability for most sneakerheads. What’s very remarkable about the black and white Playoff 12s besides the Jordan connection is how very distinct they are from their counterpart the white and black Taxi 12s. Maybe if MJ had worn the Taxi 12s in the Finals the rankings would be very different, but that’s why they play the games… and make the sneakers that they play in.
From video game journalism to veteran of the sneaker blog era to podcasting about well, everything, Juan is smiling through it all and can't believe this is his life. After recently getting into Formula 1, he now has hot takes about who the greatest driver of all time is. Email: juan@soleretriever.com
