The Nike Air Force 1 is more than a staple, it’s a rite of passage.
In the early ‘80s, the AF1 was reserved for those who knew ball and had enough coin or connections to secure team-toned SKUs. By the ‘90s, regional retros across the I-95 corridor endeared the shoe with hustlers, setting the stage for its hip-hop takeover in the ‘00s.
In 2025, the Bruce Kilgore canvas still strikes a nerve with consumers and the athletes who grew up on it. This year alone, LeBron James, Ja Morant, and the late Kobe Bryant are all ambassadors of the ‘82 icon, licensing their likeness to lux, limited, and lauded takes on the surviving silo.
For decades, Nike has both blessed and leveraged its most marketable athletes on the foundation of Force. From hybrid homages to the Round Mound of Rebound, to patent pairs inspired by World Cup champions, getting your own Air Force 1 colorway is an anointing at Nike that sits behind only buildings and namesake lines.
These are the best athlete-inspired Air Force 1s.
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Year: 2006
The quarterback of the future loved the hoop shoe of the past. Peep photos from Michael Vick’s 2000 Sports Illustrated cover story at Virginia Tech and the redshirt sophomore is rotating box-fresh Forces in every shot. All that equity added up as he made the leap from All-American to All-Pro.
By 2006, Vick had his own signature series with the Swoosh and Air Force 1 Mids made in his image. A powder blue pair from the “Collection Royale” series spoke to where streetwear was going, while a lux leather Falcons scheme stuck to the script. A neckbreaker then, a time capsule now.
Year: 2005
Mike Bibby has more Air Jordan PEs than most people have friends. Ironically enough, the 6’2 point guard was not short on friends himself.
Team Dime, a brolic bunch of Bibby’s buddies who ran clubs, pick-up games, and tattoo parlors from Tucson to Sacramento, carried so much weight around NBA circles that Nike blessed them with their own Air Force 1 exclusive.
Seeded only to the crew, Bibby’s set was privy to these premium pairs of the AF1s while the rest of his friends had to squabble over unreleased Air Jordan PEs. Yes, even Fat Joe was forced to lean back.
Year: 2009
In 1982, Moses Malone was Nike’s $100,000 man, en route to winning his third NBA MVP trophy and taking home his first NBA Championship. On his feet? The first incarnation of the low top Air Force 1.
Two years later, Moses quickly went from MVP to OG, still playing All-NBA level basketball but also playing mentor to the man who would take the torch for the Force camp: Charles Barkley.
Though the Round Mound of Rebound would modernize marketing and paint play for the Swoosh and the Sixers, it was divine intervention from Moses that both saved and birthed his Hall of Fame career.
Years after each MVP hung up their sneakers, Nike honored Barkley on his maharishi’s model with a range of Air Force 1s inspired by various Force favorites adorned by Chuck. An Alpha Force homage was amongst the best, later lending itself to Don C collabs in strap and spirit.
Year: 2025
Maybe moving from Italy to Philadelphia at an impressionable age endeared Kobe Bryant to the Air Force 1 in a way most hoopers of his era couldn’t comprehend.
On basketball’s most beloved stages, Kobe co-signed the Air Force 1 from Rucker Park play to Staples Center showdowns. Inline editions and regional releases of orange-accented box origin were good enough for the EBC and TNT in Kobe’s All-NBA ascent that transcended footwear free agency.
Once officially a Nike athlete, throwback flavor took a backseat to boundary pushing—and one of basketball’s best performance lines ever. Still, in retro life and in the after life, the Air Force 1 serves as common ground for Kobe’s limitless love of the game, seen beautifully on this 2025 take inspired by his pajama practice sessions while form shooting with a broken wrist.
Year: 2018
If you can convince an entire generation of young men to bleach their bangs surely you can sell shoes, right? Such was the case for Odell Beckham Jr., who in the late 2010s was not just the most stylish man in football, but arguably the most influential athlete in fashion since Allen Iverson.
A bidding war between Nike and Adidas over the rights to his feet eventually ended badly for Beckham, but it wasn’t without highs. The Swoosh threw the kitchen sink at and on Odell, resulting in various made-for-the-mall SF-AF1s and Air Max models. Retail releases and custom cleats aside, the crown jewel of the partnership was a “Red October” leaning take on the Air Force 1 made in Bespoke styling.
Mixed materials, premium detailing, and paisley print lining all appeared on this rare wear that was debuted by OBJ at 2018 NBA All-Star Weekend. If you want this size 11.5 you better be willing to spend.
Year: 2006
By many accounts, 2006 was when sneaker culture went from message boards to the mainstream.
The same year Turtle was lining up on TV for “Fukijama” Forces and Jordan Brand bet big on LS, Nike showed their hand with the “Collection Royale” pack: a collection of kicks inspired by poker but admittedly in dialogue with streetwear expression.
Phil Knight meets Phil Hellmuth, face card colorways catered to stars across sports with King James appropriately scoring his own Air Force 1. The pair aged well for such a loud look, adding equity to Bron’s retro reserve.
Year: 2019
Colin Kaepernick took his last snap with the San Francisco 49ers on Jan. 1, 2017, ending a six-season career and assumingly all endorsements. Nike saw things differently, aligning with the Super Bowl quarterback and evolved activist by making him a face of their multi-billion-dollar brand.
What started with 2018’s Emmy-winning “Dream Crazy” commercial culminated in 2018’s thematic Air Force 1 release, celebrating the athlete who used peaceful protest as a means to raise awareness towards the unfair treatment of African Americans by law enforcement.
Buttery black leather, double-stacked Swooshes, and icy outsoles were all aligned with premium pairs produced in the late ‘00s at 21 Mercer. What made these different was a widespread but still limited launch at retail, capped off by Kaepernick’s face strongly embroidered on each heel.
Year: 2005
Imagine having endless access to unreleased Air Jordans and still needing your own Air Force 1 PEs. These are just some of the privileges of being Carmelo Anthony.
To be fair, Melo was initially meant to be a Nike Boy, signing a massive $40 million deal with the Swoosh heading into his rookie year. Weeks later the Beaverton brand landed LeBron James, opening up discussions to send the new Nugget to Jordan Brand and make him the face of MJ’s empire.
All the while, Melo still kept Forces in rotation from red carpet to street clothes situations. This Rolls Royce-inspired PE is the best in his flock of favorites, taking on a powder blue base like his lavish ride while sporting Baltimore’s 410 area code on the bumpers.
Year: 2004
A signature shoe takes 18 months to turn from idea to reality. An Air Force 1 PE? Now that’s a tighter turn.
Throughout his storied high school career, LeBron James was the apple of every executive’s eye as Adidas adorned the Fighting Irish in apparel and countless big brands sent shoes by the boxload to the teen talent. Magazine covers, televised games, and look-see-samples all made green and gold a focus for C-suite talent and well known amongst fans.
The Nike Air Force 1 Low “SVSM” is a victory lap of sorts, releasing on the heels of LeBron’s Rookie of the Year season in which he partnered with Nike on a flagship line that’s now on its 23rd silhouette. Making the most of the lead-up and throwback frenzy, this prep pair carries the famous high school shades, lined in leather, and stamped with the crowned LJ23 logo.
Year: 2007
An embroidered flag on Air Force 1 heel was a no-brainer by 2007, but it wasn’t exactly new. Celebrating 25 years of the Bruce Kilgore classic and its hoop roots, Nike just didn’t lean into the model’s blacktop bloodline, it pumped out varicose versions tied to each esteemed baller who bought in.
Full-faced sidewalls depicted the likes of Amare Stoudemire, Vince Carter, and more mid-00s All-Stars, cast in premium materials and deeply saturated colorways. Bold? You bet. All net? Most missed.
The rare exception is that of the Kobe Bryant installment. An ocean blue sole and sandy upper elicited Los Angeles with no need for purple and gold, depicting the stoic star beneath the branding. Elevated materials made these connect when released, but the folklore of Bryant since his passing has made these even more meaningful. While not an exact retro, Nike has a similar version on deck for release soon.
Year: 2008
Few football players in the ‘00s possessed as much on-field sauce as Ladanian Tomlinson. Tinted visors illuminated supervillain facemasks, all adding to the aura of the 5’10 tailback who was running through the entire NFL.
Though the Chargers star was subject to signature trainers and substantial jersey sales, his aesthetic glow was captured most perfectly by his 2008 Air Force 1 release. All-over embossing of the croc variety was subtly and swaggy like LT himself, capped off with icy outsoles and a lightning bolt logo made from his initials.
Year: 2006
At the apex of its influence, Nike was able to twist the Chicago Bulls color palette into every adjacent expression the minds behind Air Jordan could imagine. “Infrared,” “Cardinal,” and “Fire Red” renditions kept MJ fans on their toes and at the register for the duration of the ‘90s.
By the ‘00s, Nike did not have an athlete of that gravity but it did have an entire country oozing with cool. Brazil, famous for futbol, beaches, and street parties, became a hotbed for color stories that instantly connected with soccer obsessives and sneaker collectors alike.
The Nike Air Force 1 Low “Ronaldinho” was yet another offering from the oft-mentioned “Collection Royale” pack, leveraging the prodigious midfielder with his home team palette, cross category marketing, and of the era patent shine.
Year: 2006
Kobe Bryant’s career is one of many eras, not just No. 8 and No. 24 chapters. On the court and off of it, the Black Mamba shed skins numerous times with each evolution coming closer to the curious core and maniacal drive he’d become known for.
Halfway into his Lakers legacy and new to Nike, Kobe flirted with leaving LA but pledged allegiance to the Swoosh. He was all in on the Beaverton brand from the vault to the future, wear-testing items old and new, performance and lifestyle.
The “Denim” AF1 PE of 2006 catches Kobe leaning into his new Nike role and resources, flexing his Sheath logo and accessing the fabrics once reserved for Billboard ballers. Expect the formal retro release to restore feelings.
Year: 2005
Some of the best collabs in footwear come from adding an outside perspective far from the boundaries of a brand. Others are essentially internal, stacking power on power through mutual interest. The Nike Air Force 1 Low “Chamber of Fear” series is the latter.
Aligning Nike’s $90 million athlete with that of their billion-dollar bringback, the “Chamber of Fear” collection played a part in launching the highly anticipated Zoom LeBron II while also battling Bape on their own IP.
Patent pairs, cross platform storytelling, and limited availability created the type of online groundswell usually reserved for SoHo shops or MC co-signs. With the “Chamber of Fear” Forces, Nike had all the buzz and brand equity on their own payroll, meeting the moment while elevating an athlete and shape-shifting shoe.
Year: 2001
The year was 1997 and Rasheed Wallace was doing everything 6’11 guys get paid hundreds of millions to do today: guard wings, hit threes, and attack the rim with reckless abandonment.
While Sheed was wearing out the refs, the grind of playing all three paint positions was wearing out his ankles—so much so that he needed a high-top sneaker sturdier than the Uptempos sent by his Nike rep. He needed Air Force 1s, a shoe that hadn’t been a fixture of the NBA frontcourt for nearly 15 years.
Inspired by the old heads he hooped with in Philly, Sheed started slipping orthotics in the same triple-black Highs that hustlers, Sonny Hill legends, and UPS drivers wore back home. In parallel, the perks of playing in Portland—mere miles away from Nike WHQ—made the stars align.
Early on, Sheed stayed loyal to the soil by making DIY PEs with a white-out pen. Soon, Sheed went to the Beaverton bosses with a concept for personalized pairs featuring his fadeaway silo akin to the Jumpman.
“I came up with my logo,” Wallace told Russ Bengtson in 2013. “I was like, ‘Can y’all put my logo on the shoes?’ They was like, ‘Yeah—let’s rock and roll.’”
Nike didn’t just rock and roll, they turned all the way up. By the 2000 NBA Playoffs, Sheed was an All-Star appearing on nationally televised games in his own PE pairs. A year later, Nike was selling said “Sheeds” in stores.
For the bulk of his 16 year career—save his rookie arrival in Washington—Rasheed religiously played in Air Force 1 Highs of the leather, patent, and even ostrich variety. Retail releases for Sheed styles were an almost annual event, referencing everything from his time at North Carolina to low top takes fitted for casual wear.
Sheed and Air Force 1 became synonymous, setting the precedent for what pairing an active athlete with a foundational classic could do for culture, commerce, and storytelling.
“It was already an existing shoe,” Wallace said. “I guess I just added another chapter to it.”