The release of this shoe came at an untimely hour. Jordan had disappeared. He said goodbye to the hardwood with the last shot against the Jazz. Peace Out! But this put Nike in a predicament. On the verge of launching the silhouette as a solo brand, had to sell the shoe without a player to sell it. At the same time, other shoe companies were becoming more popular. The skateboarding shoes, boots, slip- ons, and classics. They were all there to dethrone the king. Nike was nervous, as they saw their grip on the shoe game fading away like one of Jordan’s jumpers. They had to figure out how to sell the shoes to an unforgiving public without him there to do it. Well, they then figured, anything associated with him will sell. But it wasn’t supposed to end like this. Then came D-Day [Drop Day]. The Air Jordan XIII were released! Boom! Gone! All gone! None still on the shelf! It became clear that it didn’t matter if he played or not. It was what he stood for, what he represented, that mattered. That’s what sold the shoe. When It came down to it, Jordans were still, well, Air Jordans.