This model was designed by Tinker Hatfield. When the shoe launched, Michael Jordan (retired from basketball by then) was trying in minor baseball leagues. Hatfield designed the sneaker waiting for Jordan to comeback and hoping he would play in them.

The ballistic mesh upper of the sneaker was meant to make the Air Jordan XI lighter and more durable than the past sneakers. Further changes came with the use of a carbon fiber spring plate in the clear out sole, giving the shoe better torque when turning on the court. The highlight and arguably most well-known aspect of the shoe is the patent leather mudguard. Patent leather was lightweight, when compared to genuine leather, and also tended not to stretch as much – a property to help keep the foot within the bounds of the shoe bed during direction changes on the court. The patent leather gave the XI a "formal" look. When this shoe released, some wore this model with business suits instead of dress shoes.

 The shoes received more media exposure when Michael Jordan wore the Air Jordan XI model in the 1996 animated movie Space Jam. These shoes were eventually released in 2000 and re-released in 2009 with the nickname Space Jams. The concord purple was changed to royal blue for the released versions of the shoe.

The Air Jordan XI was originally released from 1995 to 1996. It was retroed in 2000, 2001, 2003, and 2006–2015. The Air Jordan XI is the most popular Air Jordan's in the series, and sells out every re-release, also it is Tinker Hatfield's favorite.