Questionable Authenticity: The Young Bucks’ Dior x Nike Air Jordan 1’s

The Young Bucks kicked off Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite by cutting a promo about their decision to align with Kenny Omega and company last week. The Bucks are now working as heels and introduced new ring gear to signify their new attitudes.

Nick and Matt Jackson sported Jordan 1 Retro High Dior sneakers this week. The shoes sell for upwards of $10,000 on the secondary sneaker market.

Some eagle-eyed fans on social media were quick to point out that the Young Bucks’ Jordan 1 Retro High Diors might not be authentic. Sneaker aficionado @Richiedge is convinced the Jackson brothers were rocking fakes.

It’s interesting that this ‘controversy’ occurred just as the Bucks were solidifying their heel turn. Was this fashion faux pas an oversight, or was it really a very clever move that shows the depths to which some wrestlers are willing to go in order to play their characters?

Designing the Perfect Heel

Spending $10,000 on sneakers could be perceived as a heel move. However, if the shoes are in fact fraudulent, there could be other forces at work.

Could Excalibur’s insistence that Don Callis is literally human garbage could point to the fakes being a planned spot? After all, great professional wrestling is about great storytelling just as much as it is the action in the ring.

Could it be that the Bucks’ new designer shoes were a gift from Callis? A device to further highlight his slimy and underhanded nature? He is, after all, a bold-as-brass coward, and an even bigger snake than Jake has ever met. Kitting out his guys in fake designer gear would be a perfect fit.

Whether true or not, you could easily see the story being spun that way now, and fair play for it. Creativity is important to AEW and well, let’s face it, you’ve got to give the people what they want.

Great heels were becoming a thing of the past, and the universal loathing for Kenny Omega and the new Super Elite is a throwback to the days when a heel was booed and loathed to the very core of a wrestling fans heart.

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