The Air Jordan 11 model was designed by Tinker Hatfield. While Jordan was still pursuing a career in baseball, Hatfield designed the shoe in hopes that Michael would eventually wear it if he returned to the NBA.
The Jordan 11 was meant to stand out with a fusion of performance and style. Further innovation came with the use of a carbon fiber plate on the sole of the shoe, that can be seen underneath the clear outsole, which gave the shoe exceptional torsional rigidity. The most visually distinct aspect of the shoe was its shiny patent leather mid and toebox. A material long used in the fashion industry, patent leather was extremely lightweight, when Air jordan shoes compared to genuine leather, and also tended not to stretch - a very useful property to help keep the foot within the bounds of the shoebed during quick direction changes on the court. The shiny leather gave the 11 what many described as a "formal" look - a fact that many owners of the shoe took advantage of thereafter, pairing the shoe off the court with business suits in substitution for dress shoes.