The Nike Air Bakin High SP “Varsity Royal” (IQ5365-400) is on SNKRS and Nike.com for Thursday, November 12. The heel carries the standard Nike Air logo with the Swoosh, not the flame-style heel logo that, per Sneaker Freaker, got the 1997 original pulled from shelves.
The 1997 original
Eric Avar designed the Air Bakin, and it hit shelves in 1997, with Tim Hardaway the first to wear it on court, according to Sneaker Freaker. Its run was short. Sneaker Freaker reports that Nike faced backlash from the Muslim community over the logo on the heel, tried covering it with a fabric patch, and in the end pulled all 38,000 pairs.
The shoe has come back since, including a Supreme collaboration in 2023. Nike’s listing for this pair says the Air Bakin “reemerges from the vault for just the second time”, and on this pair the heel shows a blue Nike Air logo with the Swoosh.
The shoe
Nike lists the colorway as Varsity Royal/Black/Metallic Silver/White. The upper is ribbed, with wavy royal-blue overlays over black mesh, a padded, high-cut collar and grey laces. Underneath, Nike says there’s Max Air in the heel and extra Air in the forefoot; the heel unit is visible, and a white Swoosh sits on the black midsole.
Release date and price
- US: Thursday, November 12, 10:00 ET on Nike’s SNKRS listing and Nike.com, $170.
- Also at Foot Locker, which lists it as the Air Bakin High OG for the same day and price.
- Sizes: men’s.
- UK and Europe: not listed on Nike GB or Nike Spain yet.
Will it be hard to get?
Our hype score is 29 (estimated): a SNKRS, Nike.com and Foot Locker launch in men’s sizes, with no resale data yet for this colorway. It’s one of the picks in our most anticipated releases of November. More from the brand on our Nike page.
