The sneaker that was born amidst the beginning of the yearly Holiday Air Jordan 11 release is making a return this week.
When the Air Jordan 11 Gamma dropped in 2013, the sneaker world was in a frenzy. Retailers were struggling with crowd control issues, as Nike and Jordan Brand delivered yet another desirable Holiday sneaker.
The Holiday Air Jordan 11 tradition, which began in 2009 with a retro of the Space Jam 11, saw a change in tradition in 2013. The Gamma was a departure from the brand’s tradition to release classic colorways of the Air Jordan 11 every December. Despite that, demand remained high for the sneaker release.
The 2013 Gamma 11 via Flight Club
With an easy-to-wear black upper and nice hits of blue on the outsole and on the jump man, the Gamma Air Jordan 11 was a hit on arrival. The success of the Gamma paved the way for more now beloved non-OG colorways of the Air Jordan 11 to release during the Holiday season. It was just two years after the Gamma launched that Jordan Brand released the ’72-10′ Air Jordan in the winter of 2015. The sneaker, meant to commemorate the Bulls at the time NBA Best Regular Season Record, took the yearly release in a new direction- as Jordan Brand spent the rest of the 2010s and early 2020s releasing desirable Holiday Air Jordan 11 releases.
Twelve years since revolutionizing the way Jordan Brand approached the Holiday Air Jordan 11 release, the Gamma 11 is making a return.
The Gamma’s 2025 return arrives at a moment when Jordan Brand is celebrating the 30th Anniversary of the Air Jordan 11. This ambitious celebration, which features a total of nine Air Jordan 11s that have released this Holiday season, is headlined by this instant-classic finally making a return.
The Gamma was lightning in a bottle. Jordan Brand loyalists are more often than not purists. Though it may seem dramatic, the shift from releasing a yearly classic Air Jordan 11 to introducing a new colorway could truly make-or-break the tradition. The Gamma Air Jordan 11 was so undeniable that it ended up strengthening the tradition.
The 2025 retro honors that significance in time by bringing back the sneaker- and making it the cornerstone of this massive celebration of 30 years.
For the Jordan Brand, it was crucial “to preserve the key design elements of Gamma that made them so sought-after in the first place, including the original detailing and logos. The Gamma Blue and Varsity Maize colorway is also the same as that of the first AJ11 Gamma, featuring a yellow tone for the accents that nod to MJ’s high school uniform colors.”
The 2025 return brings the instant-grail to a new audience ready to sink their teeth into an important part of sneaker history.
The Air Jordan 11 Gamma makes its return tomorrow, December 13th, via SNKRS.
Photos via NIKE
