How Jordan Brand are Changing the Game of Basketball In Paris

Not long after Paris Fashion Week ended, the city ushered in its own street basketball carnival. Known as "The official rendez-vous of Basketball & Hip-Hop," Quai 54, the world's top street basketball tournament, kicked off its 20th anniversary at the Roland Garros Stadium — a sports sanctuary in the western suburbs of Paris.

Quai 54 originated from the EBC game watched by one of the founders, Hammadoun Sidibé, in Rucker Park — the mecca of street basketball — during his trip to New York in 1991.

After returning to France, the history of Quai 54 began. In 2014, Carmelo Anthony, who visited Paris to watch Quai 54, highly regarded the street basketball festival as "like moving Rucker Park to the Statue of Liberty."

Behind the Diversified Basketball Event Backed by Jordan Brand

In Quai 54's 20-year history, the tournament has presented a unique experience for street basketball lovers by uniting basketball games, hip-hop, art exhibitions, sneaker culture, and superstars together in one high-octane event.

Although this is a street basketball tournament, there has never been a shortage of basketball superstars on the Quai 54 court. In 2019, Jayson Tatum, who had just become a player under Jordan Brand, appeared on the sidelines of Quai 54 and served as the Slam dunk contest judge.

Earlier this month, Quai 54 ushered in its 20th anniversary, and the judges of this dunk contest featured the three most popular players under Jordan Brand at the moment — Zion Williamson, Luka Dončić, and Jayson Tatum. At 2023's event, Zion even let one participant jump over his head while changing hands after the leap, which naturally ignited applause from the audience.

Dialogue with Jordan Brand Elite Athletes and Design Team

Outside of competitions, sneakers are the most exciting part of Quai 54. Quai 54 Jordan Brand-themed sneakers have become an important sub-category in the minds of collectors.

Jordan Brand established the Basketball Design Studio on the banks of the Paris Seine, where the brand's newly released Air Jordan XXXVIII, Jordan Zion 3 and the previously launched Jordan Luka 2 and Jordan Tatum 1 were all unveiled. At the same time, exclusive Quai 54 x Jordan colorway products were also made available.

Zion Williamson, Luka Dončić, Jayson Tatum, Jordan Brand's newly signed WNBA player Gabby Williams, and the Jordan Brand shoe design team also appeared in the Design Studio. While in attendance, Hypebeast invited them to talk about Jordan Brand's role in the street basketball scene and the design journey behind Jordan Brand footwear products.

"We hope to build a bridge between Michael Jordan's glorious past and the preferences of the current generation through "romantic" design."

"Even the most cutting-edge practical sneakers of the moment are constantly paying tribute to the past. We hope to build a bridge between Michael Jordan's glorious past and the preferences of the current young generation through "romantic" design." The high-level summary of the design team not only points out the inextricable connection between Air Jordan VIII and the just-released Air Jordan XXXVIII, but also describes the close cooperation between Jordan Brand and Quai 54.

Quai 54 was established ten years ago when Michael Jordan wore the Air Jordan VIII and won the third championship trophy with an astonishing 41-point average per game in the finals. Four years have passed since the Air Jordan XXXVIII was released - and this pair pays tribute to the new generation of Jordan trademark silhouettes.

"The design foundation of Jordan Brand basketball products is the fusion of Motion and Emotion."

Players' signature moves are a vital part of pushing the game forward – and every play ballers make on-court is a vital source of inspiration for the Jordan Brand design team. Michael Jordan's signature fadeaway jumper and agile footwork; Luka Dončić's step-back Jump shots; Jayson Tatum's forefoot-focused technical style; Zion Williamson's explosive leaps — these movements guide Jordan Brand as it conceives sneakers inspired by top athletes. In response to their different styles, Jordan Brand also injects distinct technologies into their signature shoes to meet the needs of the game.

"The design foundation of Jordan Brand basketball products is the fusion of motion (Motion) and emotion (Emotion)." David Chin, senior design director of Jordan Brand, said, "From the perspective of art and sports science, carefully capturing the dynamics of athletes on and off the court has always been the starting point of our design. We hope to design something that can help them move forward steadily. At the same time, we also hope to provide them with emotional authentic resonance through these sneakers, and look forward to these resonances appearing in every child who wears these shoes around the world."

During the design process, the Jordan Brand design team often asked themselves: "What kind of soul and storytelling perspective do we want to weave into a pair of sneakers?"

Zion Williamson recalled working with the design team while conceiving the Jordan Zion 3, "In the early brainstorming meeting, I told the team that I hope to use this pair of shoes to express the difficult moments of growing up. I kept telling myself that I needed to get out of the mud. When people wear my signature shoes, I hope they can feel my journey from the bottom of their hearts and, at the same time, understand that enough hard work will make their dreams come true.”

"Each pair of shoes is like a milestone through which I can express what is in my heart."

The growth process of "getting out of the mud" was visualized by 3D technology, and the mud in Zion's mouth became the "armor" built for him by the design team. When talking about the design experience, Joël Greenspan, senior shoe designer at Jordan Brand, said: "It is undoubtedly exciting to create a product that is both athlete-branded, simple, powerful and modern. To execute an idea requires the joint efforts of all of us."

Commenting on his new signature shoe, the aesthetically illustrious player continued, “Each pair of shoes is like a milestone, and I can express what I want through them. Adversity and doubt always come up, but I choose to face it and enjoy it.” Among them, this process is not about proving the misjudgment of others, but more importantly, proving yourself.”

For a pair of three-dimensional signature shoes, the player's off-court hobbies are as important as his on-court style. Jordan Brand's design team sees design elements on the shoe as "parallel projections of an athlete's personality on and off the court."

"When we first showed Tatum his first signature shoe, he didn't say a word, he just kept looking over and over. Everyone in the room was waiting for his response. Finally, he looked at me and smiled. He fist-bumped me and said, "this shoe is amazing." That's when we finally confirmed that he was serious about product technology innovation, future design style promotion, and focusing on developing the younger generation of players,” said Bryant Klug, Jordan Brand’s practical shoe designer, recalling the Jordan Tatum 1. In the new Jordan Tatum 1 "Denim" colorway, the uppers inspired by denim fabric reflect Jayson Tatum's personal off-court dressing style. Of course, this is also a pair that can be worn at any time and is a masterpiece of practical combat.

As Bryant Klug puts it, “If we can do a good job with the signature products of our athletes, it will also benefit a lot of kids who love them and are inspired to play like them.” Turning athletes’ amazing stories into shoes will allow people who love basketball to know the story behind each pair.

This is also a story that Jordan Brand has been trying to tell in addition to technological innovation. As the narrator and creator of basketball stories, Jordan Brand enables basketball fans around the world to participate in the sport in diverse and inclusive forms.

Thibaut, one of the founders of Quai 54, also said when recalling the trip with Jordan Brand, "We are grateful for the opportunity to tell stories with Jordan Brand." Whether it is Quai 54 from Paris, the NY vs NY rooted in New York, or the "next station Dongdan" that originated from Beijing, various events have become the "home court" of Jordan Brand in the street basketball scene.

At the same time, these tournaments have become a platform for younger generations of players to express themselves. As early as 2015, the Chinese streetball team, led by Wu You, had stepped onto the world's top stage of Quai 54. Today, the new season of "Dong Dan" is also in full swing in many cities across China. Where will Chinese streetball stars go in the future with the help of Jordan Brand? If its current rate of trajectory is anything to go by, many more elite players will rise from this "sacred land of streetball" in years to come.

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