Retro III
The Air Jordan III was a turning point in the story of Nike, Jordan and their footwear. After the departure of Peter Moore and Bruce Kilgore, Moore wanted to persuade Jordan to leave, but fate wanted Jordan to stay with Nike. Nike was aware that this was a turning point where they needed to show what they were capable of, so they invited Tinker Hatfield to participate and fully trusted him the fate of Jordan's footwear. Tinker previously worked as a shop and office architect at Nike, but that decision quickly turned out to be a hit in full! 

The 1987-1988 season was a perfect one for Jordan. He won the Dunk Contest in the new Jordan III, became the MVP of the All-Stars game, was selected on the best defensive team and was selected as the best defensive player in the league.

In order to make the Jordan III story a success, Michael's involvement was much greater than before. Jordan wanted lighter footwear that allows more mobility. So he and Tinker came to the conclusion that it was worth taking a shot with medium-high footwear, the first model of its kind in Jordan's footwear line. This shoe also featured space for the famous Jordan logo, the Jordan Jumpman, which can be seen on the heel of the footwear, and which replaced the Jordan Wings logo. And the story does not end here, because on Jordan III we can still see the trademark of Jordan's brand today, the Elephant print. Also, the Jordan IIIs are the first in the series where an Air-Sole unit is visible in the heel section.

Spike Lee, a famous American director (Mars Blackmon), whose commercials in collaboration with Michael became straight-up legendary, also added to his success with Jordan III.

How important Spike Lee was to the Nike brand and Jordan is evidenced by the fact that he earned his footwear, namely Jordan Spizike. The footwear was made in honor of the collaboration and relationship that developed between Michael and Spike Lee, featuring elements of the Air Jordan Retro III, IV, V and VI.