One of Nike’s Most Iconic Sneakers Returns to Its Performance Roots

Four-time NBA All-Star Devin Booker will carry on the legacy of Nike’s most enduring design.

Published January 18, 2025

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In the Mount Rushmore of Nike classics, you’ll find the Cortez sandwiched somewhere in-between the original Air Jordan and Air Force 1.

The shoe, designed by Bill Bowerman in the late 1960s, represented Nike’s first commercial success. It also ushered in a new era of performance footwear, due to its lightweight design and dual-density foam midsole (still a common attribute of running shoes today).

original nike cortez — The original Cortez designed by Bill Bowerman featured a white leather upper, red Nike swoosh and blue insert in the midsole.

Some time later, the Cortez was further immortalized as an all-time great, thanks to one very famous cameo in the film Forrest Gump — thus confirming the shoe’s status as a cultural icon transcendent of sport.

nike cortez shoe — The Cortez has undergone minor tweaks over the years. It’s still available for purchase, though no longer used as a performance shoe.

Back in the game

Now, over half a century since Bowerman put it into the world, the shoe will return to its performance roots. Or that’s what it looks like at face value, at least.

Devin Booker’s court-ready Nike shoe will carry on the legacy of the Cortez, adopting the iconic shoe’s signature colorway designed by Bowerman and later worn by Tom Hanks in the 1994 film.

Like Nike’s original performance shoe, the Book 1 “Cortez” features a white leather upper, Varsity Red swoosh and Varsity Blue insert in the midsole.

The panel surrounding the laces even takes on the Cortez’s famous seesaw detailing around the edges — a subtle addition absent on the myriad Book 1 colorways to date.

Otherwise, the shoe boasts all the performance features found in Devin Booker’s signature Nike shoe, including a plastic midsole shank for stability and top-loaded Zoom Air unit in the heel.