The store manager stood at the entrance, watching the line with a grin he couldn't contain.
"This morning's sales are even higher than they were after Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals," he told the person beside him. "I thought the buzz would die down once the series ended. It didn't. It got even bigger."
The person beside him asked, "Why?"
The manager thought for a moment.
"Because of Jordan. Because Jordan scored 55 in Game 4, because he played 44 minutes with a fever, because he said after the game, 'We'll be back next season.' The people who watched Jordan play remembered Li Fei. They remembered how this young man had taken up Jordan's torch, step by step. That's why they came to buy shoes. Not to celebrate Jordan's defeat, but to celebrate the birth of a new king."
Meanwhile, a few blocks away, the line outside AJ's brick-and-mortar flagship store stretched around the corner as well.
Not dozens of people—hundreds.
They wore Bulls jerseys and AJ sneakers—some old models, some new releases, some retros. As they waited in line, they talked about Jordan's 55 points in Game 4, about him playing 44 minutes with a fever, about every word he had said at the press conference.
The store clerks were just as rushed off their feet.
A long line formed before the registers, every pair of hands holding at least one box of shoes. Some bought the colorway Jordan had worn in Game 4, some bought the classic colorway he had worn in the 1998 Finals, and some bought retros of the model he had worn during his rookie season.
The manager stood at the entrance, watching the line with a complicated expression. "I thought sales would drop after we lost the series," he told the