Michael Jordan, in his heyday, was arguably the best basketball player ever and made a huge impact on the NBA. However, aside from his prowess as an athlete, he possessed a great knack for marketing. Among them was his partnership with Nike, back when they had very little NBA presence. Now, Jordan has expanded his repertoire to include NASCAR, and that started with the 23XI Racing team co-owned with Denny Hamlin.

Speaking of Hamlin, he recently paid a small tribute to his co-owner’s NBA legacy. To be precise, he unveiled a set of racing boots styled after the famous black and red Air Jordans. The original Air Jordans had been declared illegal by the NBA. Back in the 1980s, the NBA was very strict in terms of dress code, largely due to sponsorships and endorsements. There was a rule that an athlete’s shoes must be 51% white and match his teammates’ shoes. As it turned out, the only white present on the Air Jordans was the midsole.

Now, Hamlin wore those shoes as a tribute to Jordan at the Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium. He posted the same on Instagram with the caption, “The sneaker that changed everything.” Fortunately, those shoes did not violate the uniform code in NASCAR, so Hamlin was able to keep them. With those shoes on, he was able to steer his #11 Toyota to a fine 3rd place, behind race winner Chase Elliott, and Ryan Blaney.

However, the shoes were just one element of these iconic Jordans that Bowman Gray witnessed. 23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick rocked up in the ‘UNBANNABLE’ paint scheme which saw black tape plastered over the Jordan Brand logo on the car. This was a statement in many ways. Firstly, it was a nod to the banned shoes, and putting tape on the logo was Jordan showing what the NBA tried to do to him. However, the other possible angle is the NASCAR lawsuit.

23XI Racing along with Front Row Motorsports filed a lawsuit against NASCAR in 2024 for monopolistic practices. This almost led to them getting revoked of their charter status as they refused to sign the charter agreement for 2025. However, the preliminary injunction filed by 23XI was approved by Judge Kenneth Bell, and they are now a chartered team for 2025 and look to improve on a successful 2024, where Tyler Reddick made the Championship 4. The tape on the logo could be a symbol of NASCAR’s attempt to ‘ban’ 23XI by revoking their charter status.

How did NASCAR fans react to the Denny Hamlin tribute?

Of course, many in the NASCAR community went gaga over Hamlin’s new footwear. NASCAR Truck Series driver Rajah Caruth enviously declared, “Need me a pair.” Other fans also echoed that sentiment, “Praying for the day we get Jordan racing boots at retail.” Some more pertinent questions were asked like, “When’s the Denny 1 dropping?!!” While there is no official line of Denny Hamlin shoes under the Jordan Brand, this fan might have given them a great idea. Given Denny’s popularity for being a NASCAR ‘villain’, these shoes will likely fly off the shelves.

Of course, there were a few Denny Hamlin fans who started having some hope that 2025 would be their year, writing, “Those look like some winning shoes.” Hamlin has won 54 Cup Series races but is yet to take home the elusive championship, and fans feel this time might just be it with the ‘unbannable’ shoes on his feet. A fair number of people also wondered about the money, “His custom Jordans must be worth a fortune!”

In all, Denny Hamlin was pretty thrilled by his new Air Jordan 1s. He will be hoping that, just like the Air Jordans became a game-changer in the NBA, it’ll be the same in NASCAR. Of course, without the hassle of the boots being declared illegal by officials. What are your thoughts on Denny Hamlin’s tribute to Michael Jordan?