The Air Jordan 3 Retro "Mocha" released in 2001 as the first non-original colorway of the iconic Jordan sneaker designed by Tinker Hatfield. The Jordan 3 had been released as a retro back in 1994 and with MJ a couple seasons removed from his "Last Shot" in 1998, the sneaker world was ready and waiting for the Jordan 3 to make comeback. Keep in mind, however, there was no such thing as "sneaker Twitter" or "sneaker blogs" back then, so grabbing a pair wasn’t anything like the task it would later become. The Mochas were something completely different, beyond just not being original. They were a lifestyle colorway, with no tie to any professional sports team like most Air Jordans had been previously. Non-OG colorways had appeared on other Jordan models but most had a loose tie to a school or team. Ironically, the Jordan 3 Retro Mochas released just ten days before Michael Jordan announced he was returning to play for the Washington Wizards. At first the White/Dark Mocha Jordan 3 sat, and even went on discount at many retailers (like a lot Jordans did around that time). Through the years, the clean and simple placement of brown Elephant Print on the toe surround and heel grew on people. After a few years, however, the Air Jordan 3 Retro "Mocha" became one of the many Jordan 3s on the average sneakerhead’s cop list.