Key Points
- Returns July 31, 2026 for $170 (style code IV6206-010).
- Original white-and-black colorway, intact from 1998.
- Zip-up shroud hides an internal lacing system — the "Glove" fit.
- Gary Payton’s signature model from Nike’s late-90s tech era.
One of the best stories from Nike’s experimental late-90s era is coming back. The Air Zoom Flight ’98 “The Glove” returns July 31 for $170 in its original white-and-black, the first proper retro of Gary Payton’s 1998 signature in the colorway that made it a cult object.
The design still reads as futuristic. A zip-up shroud sheathes the upper and conceals an internal lacing system that wraps the foot — the lock-in that earned the shoe its “Glove” nickname, itself a nod to Payton’s defense. Fold the shroud back instead of zipping it and you expose the Monkey’s Paw, a red plastic support cage that doubles as the pair’s only pop of color.
The read: Nike’s retro machine is finally mining the weird, engineering-forward end of its archive rather than another Air Force 1 makeover. “The Glove” sits with the brand’s recent heritage returns — the Air Max 95 “Slate” in Big Bubble form and the LeBron 23 “Stewie” — as proof the most interesting reissues are the ones that take a real design risk.
Source: Sneaker News, WWD
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