2023 had high hopes for me. I felt like Nike and Jordan Brand had an opportunity to do something big for the year that coincides with the world’s most iconic jersey number; 23. The number in that Serif font alone is as recognizable as the Jumpman silhouette. Jordan fans have been waiting to see what would drop during this iconic, once in a lifetime year.
For me, I thought 2023 would be the perfect time to bring back something like the Countdown Packs. The Countdown Packs were two pairs of Jordans that were packaged together in a folding box with incredible art on the sides. Each set had a message from MJ himself. The Countdown Packs contained two pairs of the first 22 Jordan silhouettes, and they were released to build hype for the upcoming Jordan 23. The two pairs of Jordans all equaled 23. They packaged a pair of Jordan 1s with the 22s, the 9s came with the 14s and so on. The best Countdown Pack of all combined the 11s with the 12s.
Each Countdown Pack had a red colorway or black and white color blocking. Nike released 11 packs in total and these packs dropped in 2008. Retail was $310 on these bad boys. But the price of a retro at the time was around $150 so a lot has changed since then. But Jordan brand hasn’t really done much of anything to capitalize on the year of 23.
Don’t get me wrong tho, we’ve had some bangers this year. It’s too early to start talking about “shoe of the year”, but in the past 6 months, we have seen some gems. Starting back in January we saw the Jordan 1 low ‘Year of the Rabbit’ followed by the Jordan 3 ‘Reimagined’. Just in time for summer we got the Jarritos x Nike SB Dunk with one of the best special boxes that Nike has EVER released.
We all battled once again for a Travis with the release of the TS x Jordan 1 ‘Olive’. But there is a shoe that currently sits at the top of most sneakerheads ‘best of’ list, and it’s hard for me to say this, but its a Jordan 4. The Nike SB x Air Jordan 4 released on March 17…..at skateboard shops?!?!? Here in Arizona, we have Cowtown Skateboards. Cowtown is the best skate shop in AZ since Bare Cover closed in the 90’s.
Cowtown had crystal clear rules outlined on Instagram the day before the drop. They indicated that the line started at 9:00am with no camp outs. Staff would hand out a bracelet to all customers until all pairs were accounted for. The bracelet would guarantee you a pair, but not a size. They also said you couldn’t hold spots and you couldn’t leave the line. For an old school sneaker head, this hit a core memory for me. The chance to line up for a pair of kicks instead of staring at screen and crossing fingers…priceless.
But I’m not a 4s guy. I mean, I’ve had them…. I have them…. but I certainly don’t chase them…. Not even these. And at a retail of $225, someone that wants them, can have them. But I called the Glendale location around 1:00pm just to see how the sale went. The guy I spoke to said they still had pairs. I was shocked. So I called the Tempe location and they sold out “just a few minutes ago”. Goodyear and Phoenix both said they had pairs until noon. I know it takes time to run all those pairs through the register, but if they had pairs past the line, that’s incredible. Here is a shoe that could be the best shoe of the year and if you put in the time (in Arizona), pairs were there to be had. This shoe would also drop on SNKRS and that brings us to the point of this article. How is everyone getting (or not getting) pairs?
Compare an in-person line up to the number of Ls I have taken on the SNKRS app. There are three ways to get shoes on the SNKRS app. There is a FLOW drop, a DAN drop and a LEO drop. A FLOW drop is first come, first serve. This drop rewards fast buyers. If you can get your size in your cart and check out quicky, you can get a pair. A LEO drop will allow you a few minutes to enter for a shoe but the speed that you enter will not affect the result. After a LEO is entered, Nike will “process inventory” and in a short time you will find out the results of your entry. And finally, the DAN. You have a 10-minute window to enter the draw and after the timer runs out, Nike will randomly select the winners.
I read the “Didn’t get it” message on SNKRS app a few times a week. I have hit on a few GRs here and there. But I have never seen the “Got Em” on a hype pair or anything limited.
When you enter a LEO draw on SNKRS, you just cross your fingers and wait to see what happened when the 10-minute timer to enter ends. There is no skill to it, no effort, just luck. Now if we factor in the bots that eat inventory, I’m not sure what your chances of getting a pair drop down to, but if my track record is an indicator of success, it ain’t good.
There are plenty of Discord groups and Twitter accounts and even YouTubers that can tell you how many total pairs exist and how many have been frontloaded on the app prior to release. These discord groups can tell you how many pairs will be released per size for those buyers that want to play the odds by entering the draw for a size that has higher number of pairs. These are often resellers versus buyers that are looking for personal pairs. I don’t hate on resellers. Not at all. My daughter wanted a pair of Oil Green 4s for her birthday this year. I put in on ‘em. Took an L. She wouldn’t have had them if the guys at Phoenix Soles didn’t come through with the DS pair.
Last month here in Arizona, the Heard Museum dropped their own pair of dunks. The Heard Museum is a non-profit museum in Phoenix that is dedicated to the advancement of American Indian art. The museum partnered with Cowtown to present the Nike SB N7 Dunk Low Decon. The Decon dropped on June 17th at the museum on a first come, first serve basis.
The sneaker drop was a kick off to their summer events at the museum. The N7 fund is focused on Native American and Indigenous communities in North America becoming healthier, happier and more successful. N7 shoes are beautiful. But they don’t bring a lot of hype or resale. But for some members of the sneaker community, the Decon will be a must cop. And if they are willing to put the time in to stand in line a fight the heat, this is an obtainable shoe. No luck, no bots to battle. The shoe will drop on SNKRS at a later date, but now your back to fingers
But the SNKRS app isn’t done yet. There is the sought after Early/Exclusive Access. EA is supposed to be random. But there are some that say that a member’s interaction with the app can increase their chances of getting EA. Members that are within a certain proximity to a given retailer can get a randomized pass to purchase a particular pair. SP is usually for major cities only. So if you live in Newbern, VA or Greenup, KY, you are NEVER getting a SP. When Nike sent out SP for the Orange Lobster Dunks on December 1st, I was 1.2 miles away from Concepts. I was not selected. But the number of members in Manhattan that put in for it is impossible to know.
And lastly you have the Shock Drop. In theory, the Shock Drop seems great. SNKRS app drops a pair of shoes without warning and the fastest member can get a pair. But with twitter accounts like KicksFinder and Solelinks, there is always speculation about when a Shock Drop will happen and if your alerts are on, you will usually have an early indication that shock drop is coming.
Besides app draws and in-person FCFS, how else are sneakerheads getting their pairs? Champs, Footlocker and Finish Line all have lotteries. And general releases will occasionally make it to shelves on in the big box stores. Sneaker retailers have store fronts in every major city. Websites like GOAT and Snipes will always have pairs. And the app with the green X is a choice for some (and definitely not for others). And eBay has authentication and Offer Up does not, but both work. Sneaker Cons are a great option but some dealers might tax to cover their table cost. The event that is making waves is Kobey’s Swap Meet in San Diego. It seems like this is almost a monthly event at this point. It’s held close to Mission Beach in the parking lot of the Pechanga Arena. Great Dealers. Good prices. Lots of pairs. If you’re able, get to Kobey’s.
But the best drops of all are the drops that are a little different. When Union dropped the Jordan 4 Off Noir in 2020, they tried to help manual user by adding a question. For the Guava 4, the Union website asked “what color is an orange?”. There is an incredible TikTok about a shop that required customers to buy something at a bakery before they could purchase a pair of the Patta AirMax 1’s. On Valentine’s Day, the SNKRS app had a scratch off screen of a claw machine. If your screen had the Valentine’s Day Dunks in the claw, you could buy a pair. All dope ideas. Something different.
So no matter how you get your shoes, make sure you wear them.