What's the biggest clue that Michael Jordan's coming back?

As Mars Blackmon once said in an Air Jordan ad from yesteryear, "It's gotta be the shoes."

See, Jordan's kicks are more than overpriced fruits of sweatshop labor. They're also hints as to which way he's leaning.

So stay tuned, because the truth about the man's comeback won't be in the papers.

It'll be in the shoes.

You should talk to Wilson Smith. The man is the Frank Lloyd Wright of sneakers -- he conceives and designs Jordan's line. And to Smith and the rest of Jordan's team, crafting the perfect hoops shoe to get across Mike's message is a science. Everything down to the grooves in the sole has a purpose.

An earlier model of Jordans already suggested Mike might be trading the front office for the backcourt. Allow Smith to explain:

"There was a removable gaiter on that shoe that showed Mike was going from the boardroom to the court," he says. "Everything going on in Mike's life is represented in his shoes."

I'm intrigued.

I'm at Harlem's Riverbank Park, where Jordan's camp (minus the head counselor) assembled this week to unveil MJ's latest model. This one is the Air Jordan XVI Low, the world's first convertible sneaker; the top of the shoe has a collar that folds down, so it can either be a midcut or a lowcut.

But enough of that -- I want Wilson to read between the laces again. What's Mike trying to say here?

"Obviously, the collar is up when he's on the court," offers Wilson, wearing Carolina blue shorts and a sparkling pair of the new XVIs. "But he still has the option to kick back in the low top."

And which way does he, um, prefer to wear the shoe?

"Each person uses the shoe differently," Wilson grins cryptically.

His defense is as good as MJ's.

I'm running out of options. So, Wilson, how 'bout a little rundown on the next model. You know, the XVII?

"It will definitely be more court-driven," Wilson says.

Feeling about as helpless as Craig Ehlo, I change the subject. Maybe it's not the shoes after all.

E-mail Andy Latack at andrew.latack@espnmag.com.