Air Jordan 13 Retro 'He Got Game'

A panther in white leather

Tinker Hatfield designed the Air Jordan XIII around the black panther. The outsole is shaped like the pads of a panther's paw, and a hologram on the back of the heel was meant to imitate a panther's eyes glowing in the dark. The upper pairs white tumbled leather, with its pebbled dimples, against black suede on the toe and midsole, with True Red on the Jumpman and outsole.

Jordan Brand launched the model in September 1997, and the shoe reached the public in the 1997 holiday season at a retail price of $149.99. One sneaker publication describes the white, black and red pair as the only Air Jordan 13 colorway to release in 1997, which makes it the first face of the model.

Michael Jordan wore the XIII when the Bulls opened the 1997-98 season in Boston on October 31, 1997. He scored 30, with 16 of them from the free-throw line, in a 92-85 loss. It was the start of Jordan's final season in Chicago.

How a movie named a shoe

Spike Lee's relationship with Nike and Jordan went back to 1988, when he played Mars Blackmon in Air Jordan commercials. That connection got him the XIII months before it was available to the public. Principal photography on He Got Game wrapped days before the 1997 NBA Finals, which means the shoe was on a film set before Jordan had worn it in a game.

In the film, Denzel Washington plays Jake Shuttlesworth, a prisoner given a temporary release to persuade his son Jesus, the top high school recruit in the country, to sign with the governor's alma mater. Jesus was played by Ray Allen, then a young NBA guard. In one scene, Jake, fresh out of prison, buys the white, black and red XIIIs from a sneaker clerk played by actor Avery Glymph. Allen later recalled that nobody else had the shoe at the time, but Lee and Washington did.

He Got Game premiered in New York on April 25, 1998, and opened wide on May 1, 1998. It cost $25 million to make and grossed $22.4 million, a commercial disappointment despite good reviews. Its soundtrack paired songs by Public Enemy with orchestral music by Aaron Copland. Over time the film's name became the shoe's name.

The 2018 retro

The 2018 pair, style 414571-104, came back for the film's 20th anniversary at a retail price of $190, up from $170 for the 2013 retro. Release calendars list August 4, 2018; one report from that summer gave August 25. Like the 2013 version, it shipped in a reproduction of the original box, and it was expected to be a wide release at local sneaker shops and on Jordan's own site.

It was the colorway's fourth release in 21 years, after the 1997 original, a 2008 version sold as part of a two-shoe Countdown Pack, and the 2013 retro. Jordan Brand never used the film's title in its marketing. It called the shoe 'White/Black/True Red' and referred only to 'a blockbuster film,' and one sneaker site suggested the brand had not secured, or could not secure, the rights to the name.

A fifth release, style IR0973-100, was announced for 2026 at $210, in the same White/Black-True Red with tumbled leather and black suede.

How to identify a 2018 pair

The style code 414571-104 on the size tag identifies the 2018 retro; the announced 2026 pair is IR0973-100. The colorway reads White/Black-True Red: white tumbled leather upper, black suede toe and midsole panels, red Jumpman and outsole, and the holographic 'eye' on the heel.

Because the colorway has been made four times, details such as the tag date, the box and the code matter more than the look. The 2018 and 2013 pairs both came in boxes styled after the 1997 original.

The resale market for the 2018 pair stays close to retail compared with the rarest Jordans: in October 2026 the lowest listing at one U.S. sneaker shop was $298.

Jesus Shuttlesworth, still wearing them

The nickname outlived the film's box office. On January 11, 2014, playing for the Miami Heat against the Brooklyn Nets, Ray Allen wore a Heat 'Name Collection' jersey reading 'J. Shuttlesworth' with the White/Black-True Red XIIIs, with Spike Lee in the building.

Few sneakers are tied this closely to a film: the scene of a father fresh out of prison buying a pair in a sneaker store gave the colorway the only name collectors use.

The numbers

2018 release

August 2018 (August 4 per release calendars; one report said August 25)

2018 retail price

$190

Style code

414571-104

Colorway

White/Black-True Red

Release history

1997 ($149.99), 2008 Countdown Pack, 2013 ($170), 2018 ($190); 2026 announced ($210, IR0973-100)

Production numbers

Not published; the 2018 pair was a wide release

AJ XIII debut game

October 31, 1997, Celtics 92, Bulls 85, at Boston. Jordan: 42:02 min, 7-23 FG, 16-21 FT, 30 pts, 6 reb, 4 ast

Timeline

1. 1988

   Spike Lee begins appearing as Mars Blackmon in Air Jordan ads.

2. Jun 1997

   Principal photography on He Got Game wraps days before the NBA Finals, with the unreleased XIII on set.

3. Sep 1997

   Jordan Brand launches the Air Jordan XIII; it reaches stores that holiday season at $149.99.

4. Oct 31, 1997

   Jordan opens the 1997-98 season in Boston wearing the XIII and scores 30.

5. Apr 25, 1998

   He Got Game premieres in New York.

6. May 1, 1998

   He Got Game opens across the U.S.

7. 2008

   The colorway's first retro, in a Countdown Pack.

8. 2013

   Second retro, at $170, in a reproduction of the original box.

9. Jan 11, 2014

   Ray Allen wears the colorway with a 'J. Shuttlesworth' jersey for the Miami Heat.

10. Aug 2018

    Third retro, style 414571-104, at $190, for the film's 20th anniversary.

11. 2026

    A fifth release, style IR0973-100 at $210, is announced.

The world in 1997

• Mar 9, 1997

  The Notorious B.I.G. is killed in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles.

• Jun 28, 1997

  Mike Tyson bites Evander Holyfield's ear in Las Vegas.

• Jul 4, 1997

  NASA's Pathfinder lands on Mars.

• Jul 15, 1997

  Gianni Versace is shot dead outside his Miami Beach home.

• Dec 19, 1997

  Titanic opens.

• Mar 23, 1998

  Titanic wins a record-tying 11 Academy Awards.

• Jun 14, 1998

  Jordan's last shot as a Bull wins Chicago's sixth title.

Price record

This is an asking price, not a sale. It is what a seller wanted on the date shown. Asking prices often sit above what buyers pay, but an ask is not a ceiling: a sale can land on either side of it. It is not a value.

By reference price, Air Jordan 13 Retro 'He Got Game' is number 77 of 100 in the sneakers entries of the FLOAT 100. 22 of those 100 rest on a realized sale; the rest carry an asking price or a guide value, and each page says which. Rank within the FLOAT 100 itself (87 here) is editorial: how much an object defines its field, not price alone.

Did you know

• Spike Lee filmed the XIII before Michael Jordan had worn it in an NBA game.
• Jordan Brand has never officially called the shoe 'He Got Game'; it sold the 2018 pair as White/Black/True Red.
• The XIII's heel hologram was meant to look like a panther's eyes in the dark.
• He Got Game cost $25 million to make and grossed $22.4 million.
• Ray Allen wore the colorway with a 'J. Shuttlesworth' jersey in a 2014 NBA game, with Spike Lee watching.
• The original 1997 pair retailed for $149.99; the 2018 retro was $190.