We toss around the term ‘GOAT’ too liberally these days. That breakfast burrito from this morning? Goated—but 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 one’s true, it was elite and we’re 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 then—roughly every six or seven years, to be specific—we are reminded that the Air Jordan 3 ‘Black Cement’ truly is one of, if not the, GOAT. Of Jordans, of colorways, of sneakers overall.
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It’s hard to imagine anyone who cares about sneakers even just a little bit doesn’t know the story, but just in case, here are the CliffNotes. The 3 was designed by the GOAT—Tinker Hatfield, the legendary Nike and Jordan Brand designer—for another GOAT, Michael Jordan. Two years into the Air Jordan experiment, the sneaker’s namesake player had some lingering doubts. Hatfield’s 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 ‘Cement’). Jordan made magic in the 3, notably lacing up a pair for his iconic 1998 NBA Slam Dunk Contest win.
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