Collection: Nike Dunk Collection

The Nike Dunk Highs was released in August 1985 as a high-top basketball sneaker, having been crafted out of four earlier Nike models – the Air Force 1s the Terminator, the Air Jordan 1s and the Legend. The AF-1 inspired the Dunk’s overall look – the outsole borrowing the same traction as the AF-1 – the upper was a merging of the AJ-1 and the Terminator, and the Legend was used to help create the molds for the Dunk. The Nike Dunk’s predecessors helped form the silhouette’s final shape, but the backstory behind the sneaker’s very first release was what gave it its unique charm.

The shoe’s 1985 release coincided – and not coincidentally – with the golden age of basketball and its spotlit star, Michael Jordan. Being designed to accommodate basketball tactics and moves such as pivoting and blocking, the Nike Dunk became an instant success within the sport upon release – on its technical parameters that is. Truly, the 1985 Nike Dunk High became famous for something a little bit more colourful and symbolic than this, dubbed “Be True To Your School”.

“Be True To Your School” was Nike’s first attempt at marketing the Nike Dunk. It offered Division I college basketball teams and their respective fans a way to don their team’s colors. Each Dunk iteration focused on a specific colour treatment for respective teams, with the Swoosh having previously struck deals with the University of Iowa, University of Kentucky, University of Michigan, Georgetown, St. John’s, UNLV and Syracuse to confirm the Dunk High as their teams official shoe.