Air Jordan 3 "White Cement Reimagined" Hearkens Back to 1988 in This Week's Best Footwear Drops

The 2023 calendar has officially turned its page to March, and in the month’s first week, notable sneaker brands from Nike to Jordan Brand to Mizuno are kicking things off with high energy. A fresh batch of inline colorways and striking collaborations are in preparation for their public delivery, but before we sift through those we’d like to give you a quick recap of the biggest footwear news that went down in the industry last week.

Let’s talk exclusives first. Hypebeast‘s Sole Mates series proceeded with its latest feature centered around Joshua Zbinden — a high school economics teacher and sneaker acicionado — who spoke to us about his obsessions with the Air Jordan 4. Additionally, we also got the opportunity to catch up with norda‘s co-founders to talk about the label’s latest collaboration with ZEGNA.

Transitioning over to the news category, we saw a wide range of new offerings get unveiled from the likes of Nike and Jordan Brand. The former confirmed its friends and family colorway of its Air Force 1 Low collaboration with Tiffany & Co., previewed more imagery of the Nike SB x Air Jordan 4 “Pine Green” collaboration, revealed official imagery of its Nike Air Max 1 ‘86 “Big Bubble” colorway and teased a CLOT x fragment design Nike Dunk Low team-up. Folks from the Jumpman team announced its Summer 2023 Retro collection, flexed an Air Jordan 1 Low OG “UNC” PE as well as revealed the retro Air Jordan 4 “Thunder” and Air Jordan 1 Retro High OG “Lucky Green” colorways.

adidas added a handful of exciting products to their lifestyle category as well including a two-pronged collaboration with BEAMS and Bodega, a “Triple Black” adiFOM Superstar and an “Olive” Bad Bunny adidas Campus Light installment. Additional footwear initiatives that generated a sizable amount of buzz included Timberland’s hip-hop inspired boots, the New Balance 550 “Verdigris” colorway and Vans’ collaborative capsule with Haribo.

Now that you’re all tapped in with the latest in footwear, scroll further down to learn more about this week’s hottest drops. And when you’re finished peeping those, be sure to head over to HBX to shop for more footwear styles.

Brain Dead Wooden Clog

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Brain Dead

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Brain Dead

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Brain Dead

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Brain Dead

Release Date: March 7
Release Price: TBC
Where to Buy: Brain Dead
Why You Should Cop: After going on a footwear collaborations streak alongside ASICS Oakley, Brain Dead is reeling things back in and beefing up its inline footwear category this season. Its obscure Wooden Clog is being brought back into the spotlight in two fresh colorways, the first of which arrives with an all-black presentation and features giraffe tonal giraffe patterns while the other is brought to life with a gray and sand color scheme.

Air Jordan 2 Low “UNC to CHI”

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Nike

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Nike

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Nike

Release Date: March 8
Release Price: $150 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: After having a monstrous 2022, the Air Jordan 2 is ready to keep its momentum rolling along this year with a slew of new colorways. And set to hit the market this week is the Air Jordan 2 Low “UNC to CHI” which unofficially celebrates Jordan’s primetime playing days in college as a Tar Heel and as a professional baller with the Chicago Bulls. Jordan Brand designers combined the primary accent colors from both teams onto this lifestyle iteration and it naturally created a patriotic palette.

Doyenne x Nike SB Blazer Low

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Nike

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Nike

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Nike

Release Date: March 8
Release Price: $100 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: Nike SB has tapped the women’s-led brand and design studio Doyenne to put together a unisex footwear and apparel collection. On the sneakers side, they’ve cooked up an SB Blazer Low that is fashioned with neutral colors, layered taping, blurred graphics as well as durable canvas that was made from pineapple wastes. The collaboration is devoted to celebrating the intricacies of change and growth.

Nike Dunk Low “Black Suede”

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Nike

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Nike

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Nike

Release Date: March 9
Release Price: $120 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: If you’re a fan of the “Panda” Dunks but want an offering from Nike that’s slightly different from that, then the brand’s latest Nike Dunk Low “Black Suede” just might do the trick. Thanks to its “Black” and “Coconut Milk” upper panels you receive almost, if not just the same amount of versatility to wear all-year long and you get subtle-yet-striking accents through the three-toned laces.

FaZe Clan x Nike LeBron 20

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Nike

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Nike

Release Date: March 9
Release Price: $160 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: LeBron James might be sidelined due to a foot injury right now, but that isn’t stopping him from handling his business away from the hardwood. Hot off the heels of announcing his own PlayStation 5 collaboration, “The King” is keeping us tapped in with his love for gaming with the release of his new FaZe Clan x Nike LeBron 20 colorway. The kicks are done up with all-over warp patterns and arrive with a classic “Black/University Red” presentation.

Nike Air Max 1 “Shima Shima”

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Sneaker Politics

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Sneaker Politics

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Sneaker Politics

Release Date: March 10
Release Price: $160 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS and Sneaker Politics
Why You Should Cop: The Swoosh designers have conducted some archival digging this year and elected to reintroduce the Nike Air Max 1 “Shima Shima” to the public. Arriving with all of its original design cues, the pair comes packaged with muted “Wolf Grey” and Plum Eclipse” uppers along with sockliners that feature throwback pinstripe details. Additionally, the tongues and footbeds’ customary Nike Air branding has been traded out for Japanese characters.

CLOT x Nike Cortez “CLOTEZ”

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Juice

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Juice

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Juice

Release Date: March 10
Release Price: $140 USD
Where to Buy: Juice
Why You Should Cop: Following up on their crispy clean black and white collaboration, CLOT’s Nike Cortez “CLOTEZ” has returned to our radar this time with a bold black and yellow arrangement. The kicks are designed to honor martial arts legend Bruce Lee. Chinese characters “潮” and “幫” are embroidered into the heels to reference reference to CLOT’s Trendy Gang NFT. while the drawstring systems are ornamented with the yin-yang icon. Additionally, the shoes are housed inside a special box that is printed with various Bruce Lee combat movement graphics.

Patta x Converse One Star Pro

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Patta

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Patta

Release Date: March 10
Release Price: $105 USD
Where to Buy: Patta
Why You Should Cop: St. Patrick’s Day is upon us, and Patta and Converse are feeling lucky with their latest One Star Pro collaboration. Styled to honor the four-leaf clover, the sneakers feature hairy suede brown uppers that likely represent the soil. The One Star logos have been remixed with clover icons in the center, and Patta branding has been added to the tongues. Laces turn up in all-black and the words “4 Leaf Clover” are printed in repeating fashion on the molds that rest just above the midsoles.

Maharishi x ‘97 Mizuno Wave Rider 10

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Maharishi

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Maharishi

Release Date: March 10
Release Price: $210 USD
Where to Buy: Maharishi
Why You Should Cop: Maharishi is expanding its collaborative horizons this month by diving into Mizuno’s catalog and putting its own spin on the ‘97 Mizuno Wave Rider 10. The London streetwear label’s utilitarian sensibilities are translated through the drab olive tones that alternate in shade amongst its AIRmesh base and accompanying suede overlays tones. Quarter panels host the usual Mizuno RubBird insignia but are also spruced up with a white phoenix that is embroidered on top.

Air Jordan 3 “White Cement Reimagined”

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Nicholas Llanton/Hypebeast

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Nicholas Llanton/Hypebeast

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Nicholas Llanton/Hypebeast

Release Date: March 11
Release Price: $210 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS and Shoe Palace
Why You Should Cop: In honor of the Air Jordan 3’s 35th anniversary, the Jumpman team is harking back to ‘88 by delivering the silhouette’s “White Cement Reimagined” colorway. The more favored “Nike Air” branding dresses up the heel counters while the pre-yellowed midsoles give the pair its vintage-y charm. The traditional elephant patterns have arrived in thinner fashion to align with the OG pairs while the classic “Fire Red” accents sprinkle to the eyelets, Jumpman logos and soles.