Brendan Dunne 
Let’s face it, it’s pretty unlikely that the sneakerhead community will ever come to a consensus on the single greatest Air Jordan silhouette of all time. There are solid arguments for a handful of them; from the obvious historical significance of the Air Jordan 1, to the onset of the Tinker years marked by the Air Jordan III, to that all-important first championship sneaker the Air Jordan VI. With all that being said there’s pretty much no argument to be had regarding which model is consistently the most sought after and talked about when the dust settles: the Air Jordan XI. The fervor surrounding the default high-hitting version extends down to the Air Jordan XI Low as well, a model tuned up to accomodate MJ’s preference for playing in lows. During the Air Jordan XI’s original moment in the spotlight a handful of these low hitting PE’s were made for Michael himself, with the public forced to settle for the tweaked IE version as far as retail availability. The true patent leather version’s eventual emergence from the vaults half a decade later would mark the first retro Air Jordan Low, and no doubt the most sought after in that category which we’ll be focusing on in this spot as the week progresses.
When the Air Jordan XI Low did finally arrive in 2001 the colorways it carried were far from OG styles like the ‘Bred’ and ‘Concord’, the sneaker opting instead to blaze a new trail independent of the Chicago influence. One particular duo amongst the 2001 run stands out as especially unique, upping the opulence of the original Tuxedo styled high class performance of the Air Jordan XI with a snakeskin wrap around the mudguard. Pictured above is the men’s release among the two, slapping the reptilian look on in an alternating navy and black pattern. The women’s, pictured after the jump, debuted in the same white base albeit with pink on the shiny strip to cement their feminine aim.
As previously mentioned these two weren’t the only pairs the public was treated to during that epic 2001 run. The men’s crop also included alternating pairs in columbia blue and varsity red, with the latter registering as the only amongst the group to have some vague semblance of a ‘Bulls’ look. Also on the menu for men’s releases that year was the Air Jordan XI Low in zen grey, a clean slate version whose closest analog is the Air Jordan XI ‘Silver Anniversary’ of many years later. The women’s side of things was rounded out by the similarly bare citrus pair that brought a unique look to the icy outsole and the silver that donned a metallic look. Stay with us after the jump for a look at the Air Jordan XI Low ‘Snakeskin’ releases, as well as all of the other Air Jordan XI Low retro releases from the 2001 stretch and stick with us throughout the week as we bring you more from the category of Air Jordan Lows for your daily dose of Classics Revisited.
Air Jordan XI Low
White/Black-Navy
136071-102
5/2001
Air Jordan XI Low WMNS
White/Black-Pink
833003-103
5/2001
Air Jordan XI Low
White/Varsity Red
136053-161
4/2001
Air Jordan XI Low
White/Columbia Blue
136053-141
4/2001
Air Jordan XI Low
White/Zen Grey
136053-101
6/2001
Air Jordan XI Low WMNS
White/Metallic Silver
833001-102
4/2001
Air Jordan XI Low WMNS
White/Citrus
833001-181
4/2001
Photos: Kixclusive
