We are only two months in to 2025 and Nike has already blown our minds. The end of 2024 gave us plenty to be excited about after a year that felt a bit more like a valley than a peak. The sneaker community loves a good list. And all of the “Best of 2024 Sneaker” lists that we were looking at a few weeks ago, almost felt like a reminder that 2024 was a bit underwhelming. The Nike Futura SB was the shoe of the year, Industrial Blue 4s and Trophy Room 1 Lows all stood out to me as well.

These Nike Futura SB’s thooooooooooooooooo???

We had some bangers to be sure in 2024. But a lot of us added way fewer pairs to our collection then we did in the years prior. But we knew from the previews, that ‘25 would be an epic year. And after only a few weeks, our collective jaws have hit the floor a few times. Let’s jump in…

The Book 1 Takeover

We have to start with Devin Booker. In AZ, Kevin Durant is a big name. But the name Devin Booker is HUGE! The Book 1 has been mentioned here on Mid90s a few times, but the Nike marketing department has really leaned into this shoe recently. The Book 1 has been released in 13 colorways to date. And Booker has worn so many player colorways of this shoe on court, that any collector would have trouble trying to keep up.

Last year, DB’s Instagram left some cryptic clues on where fans could show up to get free pairs of the Book 1 in the “Rattlesnake” colorway. There was a different clue each day, and according to social media, you literally had to be standing there when the rep jumped out of her car with pairs. This caused us to guess where the location would be based on significant hiking trails in the valley. The closest I came was the South Mountain trailhead drop. I was in the car. Couldn’t find a spot to park. Got to the Nike rep just a few minutes too late, as all the pairs had been claimed.

This month, Booker’s Instagram has been putting in overtime. For the “Sedona” colorway and the “Flagstaff” colorway, Booker has posted pictures of signed pairs next to trailheads in the two cities for his followers to find and keep.

And if that wasn’t enough for this shoe, we got the “Forrest Gump” colorway. It came with a terrific ad campaign and once again, we had pairs left at bus benches in Phoenix (since Forest sat on a bus bench to tell his story in the movie). Book even gifted Tom Hanks a signed pair.

The Jordan 1 Banned

Then we get the news of the Jordan 1 “Banned” or Bred colorway. If you have been in the sneaker space for longer than thirty seconds, you know this shoe. It could be the most iconic shoe of all time.

Nike retroed the “Banned” in 2016. But this time, we learned little by little, that Nike wanted this to be as close to the original 1985 Air Jordan 1 Banned as possible. We learned that they meticulously dissected a surviving pair from 1985 of the original shoe so every measurement, shape of the toe box, the height of the collar, stiffness of the leather, even the thickness of the laces. Nike wanted every detail to match the ‘85. Then he heard the original hand carved details on the original midsole and outsole were digitally scanned and replicated. Finally we heard that the tongue of an original ’85 was sent to a chemist so the exact molecular make up of the materials could be replicated. Then Nike hit us with an uppercut. They would only give us 10,000 pairs.

The news on the 2025 Jordan 1 Banned changed the perception and the demand of the shoe. 23 retailers would carry the shoe. And the retail price would be $250 bones. My home state of Arizona doesn’t even have a store that will offer the shoe. But Florida gets two?? Oh well. The cherry on top was the white glove experience that Nike wanted retailers to give their customers. The retailers did not disappoint. Instagram was flooded with customers sipping champaign prior to check out. In Chicago, customers were contacted and asked if they wanted to be picked up and brought to the release “special event” in a Rolls Royce or a Lamborghini. Customers that were chosen, had to take off their shoes after arrival and put on special slides to walk back and purchase their pair. The Nike marketing masterminds were on their game for this one.

If you didn’t get the ’85 Banned, Nike dropped the Jordan 1 Black Toe Reimagined the NEXT DAY!! This shoe on its own would have been big news. I think Nike wanted it to be a consolation prize for sneaker heads that missed the Banned, but because of the hype of the banned and the limited number of pairs we got, the black toe was overshadowed and the back to back release might have backfired. The black toe was packaged in the best Jordan box we have gotten in a while. It also came with stylish paper that gave a nice surprise to opening the box. The black toe featured the original concept Jordan branding that appeared on the pair in the photo of Mike on the box. The shoe also has a very cool Easter egg feature. After wearing the shoe during his inaugural season, MJ gifted the pair to a personal friend. He wrote “My Very Best – Michael Jordan” on the left medial collar. This message is included (in Jordans handwriting) on the left shoe. But it can only be seen under a light. This shoe has fantastic storytelling and history. But Nike blew it. Jordan 1 interest is down and the banned stole the spot light. Nike held this shoe for a 2025 release. If they release this shoe in 6 months, it would have had a much higher demand.

Last year we got the Wu-Tang Dunk. An absolute grail for so many sneakerheads. And I was 1000% wrong about them. I thought guys like me would want pairs that we couldn’t have when we were kids. The demand was minimal. Shops in my area weren’t even buying pairs because the resale was barely above retail. The Wu-Tang Dunk. No hype. Too many pairs. Now if the Jordan 1 Banned had GR numbers instead of 10,000 pairs…would there be any hype surrounding it? This is a $250 pair of Jordan 1s. I fully understand that this is THE pair of Jordan 1s. But the Banned has been dropped numerous times. But what about the Galaxy Foamposite?

Galaxy Foamposites Are Back

The Galaxy Foamposite was one of the craziest moments in sneakers back in 2012. The Galaxy released during the NBA All-Star Weekend and EVERYONE wanted it. It was a shoe that everyone had to have. Now it’s back with its incredible Galaxy box, paper and memorable “remove before flight” hang tag. The legendary glow in the dark outsole is back as well. For $230, the Galaxy Foamposites can be picked up for the first time it has ever been retroed. Every Foamposite has been expensive. The money Nike spent on the R&D and production of this shoe has been outlined in many places including here on Mid90s. This shoe was THE shoe during what could be considered the peak of Nike basketball. This shoe represents a big moment in sneakers. I think there will be a lot of sneaker fans that couldn’t get this grail back in the day and will be eager to pick them up now as stock numbers will certainly be much higher than 2012.

The Wizard of Oz SB Dunks

And now for the most outrageous sneaker event in the sneaker world for 2025 (so far)… the Wizard of Oz Dunk. The Wizard of Oz dunk dropped on the SNKRS app just like countless other Nike SB’s have before it. The shoe had the poppy field pattern and hits of red throughout the shoe including the sock liner, swoosh and tongue. The shoe had very little hype and they were readily available for just over retail. The shoe came in a sealed black blind bag within the Nike box.

Then Blue Tiles Skate Shop in South Carolina found the first pair of the Ruby Red Slipper Nike SB variant colorway. This pair had a red sequence look with the toe detail of the Wicked Witch magic hitting the toe box just like the 1939 film. Apparently, skate shops received some late shipments that included the ruby red pairs. There have been two sales on Stock for around $6k. There are only 3 pairs available on the site with only about 7 or 8 pairs found in total. If you’re a skate shop manager, I’m sure you have torn open every bag to find the ruby reds. Because we haven’t seen many pairs hit market, I bet there aren’t many left to find. In world full of rumors and leaks, Nike’s ability to keep this one quiet is incredible. Well done.

Nike’s decision to open up the vault and retro grails is an interesting choice. Some sneakerheads love it, some don’t. The Wu-Tang Dunk came and went. The campaign and marketing for them was incredible and they bricked. The Galaxy Foam and Jordan 1 Banned seem like they will make some noise in the sneaker space. The Wizard of Oz came out of nowhere and the moment it gave us was epic. The Jordan 5 Metallic is around the corner and then we got the Flu Game 12s on March 1st. There are literally too many gems for any bank account in 2025. Grab all the pairs you can. And make sure you wear them.

Shout out to my lil man Logue. HBD. Daddy loves you.