We toss around the term âGOATâ too liberally these days. That breakfast burrito from this morning? Goatedâbut was it really? The latest artist you spent three consecutive days listening to on loop? The GOAT, at least until you find a new song to listen to for three days straight at which point the title passes. The fit you wore on Wednesday? GOAT vibes (that oneâs true, it was elite and weâre all very proud of you). Unfortunately it is a term at risk of losing any weight it may have held. Such are the perils of declaring anything and everything the Greatest Of All Time.
Still, now and then something comes along that restores the weight, and heavily so. Now and then greatness is undeniable. Now and thenâroughly every six or seven years, to be specificâwe are reminded that the Air Jordan 3 âBlack Cementâ truly is one of, if not the, GOAT. Of Jordans, of colorways, of sneakers overall.
Itâs hard to imagine anyone who cares about sneakers even just a little bit doesnât know the story, but just in case, here are the CliffNotes. The 3 was designed by the GOATâTinker Hatfield, the legendary Nike and Jordan Brand designerâfor another GOAT, Michael Jordan. Two years into the Air Jordan experiment, the sneakerâs namesake player had some lingering doubts. Hatfieldâs work on the 3 erased them, taking the silhouette from a high-top to a mid and adding a visible Air unit to the heel. Hitting courts and shelves alike in 1988, it featured the on-shoe debut of the Jumpman logo and, across two colorways, a unique cracked elephant print (the titular âCementâ). Jordan made magic in the 3, notably lacing up a pair for his iconic 1998 NBA Slam Dunk Contest win.
