Description:
"When we’re talking about the ‘Fly Through’ aspect, we’re looking at building a shoe that’s going to be substantial enough for that kind of power post player and that guy that’s battling on the boards, fighting for rebounds on that second jump. So, we were really looking to build the Melo M8 for Carmelo’s specific style of play. As for the aesthetics of the shoe, if you look at the shape of the rand, and how there’s a hump and a tail on the heel, all of that was inspired by Melo’s style of play. Specifically, the dip line of the Melo M8 represents when Melo kind of dips down and sizes his opponent before making his move. One thing we talked to Melo about his “moment of truth”, and that’s where he sees where his defenders feet are. So, when he sizes them up and he’s looking down, that’s kind of where we got this first dip line/angle from on the Melo M8. The second hump represents the move that he actually makes around the opponent. It might be a jump stop or a pivot around the opponent. Lastly, the heel piece going up towards the Achilles is his move that he makes towards the basket, the explosive finish as he’s going up to the rim. So, even aesthetics are inspired by Melo’s play.
As far as performance attributes, Melo really loved the Flywire that was on the Melo M7, so he wanted to keep that aspect on the Melo M8. So, in that proposition, we decided to break it up a little more and do just the quarter in Flywire because Carmelo has a narrow foot. The Flywire on this shoe is in a regional location to address the fit and lockdown.
As we get to the bottom, where a lot of the real technology for ‘Fly Through’ comes in, we really catered to Melo’s style of play with the midsole and outsole of this shoe. We looked at that first, initial drop step. There are flex grooves in the outsole that will help guide your foot in a natural motion as your planting and transitioning. Also, you can see the big shank in the arch, which is present for support and that transition. We’re harnessing the energy that’s planted from the heel and it’s helping and guiding that explosive step so that Melo can ‘fly through’
As you get up into the forefoot, you’ll see more grooves to keep it nice and flexible. The herringbone traction is where you need it, and we learned from studying drop step videos and looking at pivot points. When a foot is pivoting, it’s actually in the middle of the forefoot as opposed to the medial area. If you look at old Air Jordans, you’ll see the circle is kind of on the medial side. So, we recessed this blue traction pod off of the court, so you’re not engaging that traction when you’re planting and going to spin. If you’re stopping real quick, running or planning to jump, you engage that traction. So, you’re getting traction when you need it and that free zone for pivoting when you don’t need it. So, that in conjunction with the TPU cage, is what really allows Melo to harness that energy. We’re also exposing the forefoot Max Zoom. This is the first time Jordan Brand has done an exposed Max Zoom bag. It provides the lateral support for this shoe, and it works like an outrigger."
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