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Original Story (01/27/25): As the Chicago Bulls host the Denver Nuggets tonight at the United Center, the team also unveiled its campaign with Jordan Brand to celebrate Michael Jordan’s legacy and the 40th anniversary of the Air Jordan 1.
Fans who stop by the United Center will see black bars covering the shoes on Michael Jordan’s statue. This is in reference to Nike’s 1985 “Banned” ad, which placed animated black bars over the Air Jordan 1s amid the NBA’s shoe restrictions at the time.
As the story goes, the league attempted to ban MJ’s shoes due to its black and red color scheme that failed to conform with uniform regulations. Nevertheless, MJ continued to wear this “Bred” colorway, and Nike paid the fines associated with Jordan wearing them. This story is now being retold with an updated “Banned” campaign and the highly-anticipated release of the Air Jordan 1 High ’85 “Bred.”
Jordan Brand’s updated “Banned” campaign will run throughout 2025 to not only commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Air Jordan 1, but the 40th anniversary of the entire Air Jordan line. No Jordan sneaker is safe from getting the “banned” treatment, not even the Air Jordan 9s on MJ’s statue.
As part of the campaign, Jordan Brand also created a fictional character named Lawrence H., an employee at Nike whose role is “Middle Management.” Lawrence’s responsibilities include saving the company money by enforcing the Air Jordan ban, though he may have gone too far this time.
The Jordan Brand activation at the United Center will be on display from now through February 4th. Check out the statue’s new look below.
Update (01/30/25): We stopped by the United Center to grab an in-person look at Jordan Brand’s new “Banned” activation and learn more from Bulls VP of Partnership Marketing Megan Donovan. Check out our additional coverage below.
Jordan Brand teamed up with the @chicagobulls on a special activation as part of their 40th anniversary “Banned” campaign 🚫
We stopped by the United Center to grab a closer look and learn more from Bulls VP of Partnership Marketing Megan Donovan pic.twitter.com/9nQ7FqeyHF
— Modern Notoriety (@ModernNotoriety) January 30, 2025
If it was just a shoe, why did they try to ban it? pic.twitter.com/01S6n7w1WP
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) January 27, 2025
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