Adidas and Nike have been in a fierce rivalry ever since Nike’s first year in 1971, and one of the main focuses of their rivalry has been who could make a better basketball shoe.
Adidas always had the upper hand in the earlier days of the rivalry until Nike struck gold when they made the first ever signature shoe for an athlete, that athlete obviously being “His Airness”, Michael Jordan. The Air Jordan 1 became a phenom in basketball culture, pop culture, fashion, and cemented Nikes legacy as the premier basketball shoe brand. Since then, Nike has always held the upper hand.
Adidas has always tried their best to compete, but nothing could top Nike. Nike has ruled the basketball shoe world for the last 30 years in my opinion, even though both brands have put out some iconic sneakers. Nike just has always had that star quality, with athletes like Jordan, Kobe, Lebron, KD, and many others always having shoes out every year, they have showed that star power mixed with great designs and technology goes very far.
Recently though, I’ve noticed that Nike has been struggling with the competition of Adidas, who out of nowhere this year has produced shoes for some big-name NBA stars that might just be better than Nike. I’ve always loved both brands and their competitiveness to make great fashion and sportswear, but have always considered myself a Nike guy, but I think it is time to fairly compare the two brands shoes this year.
First, we will look at Nike’s best and the ones that don’t exactly woo me. Starting off with Nike’s best-looking shoes by far this year, the Sabrina 1’s. This is Sabrina Ionescu’s first show with Nike and wow it is great. She is the first WNBA athlete to have her own Nike shoe, and she worked with Nike to make something great.
The design is kind of like how Kyrie Irving’s shoes used to look, and it even has a Kobe like snake pattern on the toe. The coolest part is the placement of the Nike swoosh on the inside of the shoe being diagonal down the side instead of the normal horizontal look. A lot of NBA players have been wearing this shoe and saying it is the all-around best Nike shoe on the market right now, and if NBA players are saying that about a WNBA players shoe, you have to admit that Sabrina has been is killing it recently on the court, and off.
The LeBron XXI is the newest addition to the constantly moving LeBron basketball shoe line. This model that comes out very soon has been worn by players and superstars alike all season. It is a classy looking shoe that features a whole glow in the dark outsole and this string design that starts in the back of the show but appears to go through the Nike swoosh on the inside of the shoe. This shoe is an all-around gem that is straying from Lebron’s old designs from the past that had air bubbles galore and multi thread exteriors. These shoes look like a return to form for LeBron and look like they could be a top Nike basketball shoe this year.
On the opposite side, the Ja 1 doesn’t really do it for me. It is a lower cut basketball show which I don’t really dig, and the shoe just seems very reused in the designs. Ja Morant has been a press disaster for Nike for most of his career as the Memphis Grizzlies star has been suspended many times for unorderly conduct this past season. Nike states that they are staying with the athlete, but the future looks rocky. The brand is going to have to do a lot to make the Ja 2 better than the first, and keep Ja out of the negative spotlight. I ‘d say Nike’s catalogue today is carried by a few good shoes but have a lot of “meh” in the mix as well. This is something that their competition is beating them at.
Adidas’s basketball division has stepped up their game this year by releasing a new shoe to bond with their new signature athlete Anthony Edwards. This signing was huge for Adidas because Edwards is becoming quite popular this season, drawing comparisons to MJ for playing style, and being named by a lot of people the next NBA superstar or goat. The Minnesota Timberwolves star and Adidas wanted to create the most futuristic shoe that was comfortable but looked sleek and mean.
The AE 1 is one of the best-looking shoes on the market right now. Its design is great, using this rubber outside that wraps around most of the show with this beehive hexagon pattern. The heel has a carbon fiber look to it and has the adidas branding. The shoe has been praised for being super comfortable, and people seem to love the way it forms to your feet. This shoe has been one of the prime examples of Adidas’s basketball division coming up, but another athlete and Adidas are making waves with a shoe as well. James Harden has been an Adidas athlete for quite some time and has had a signature shoe for a while. The Harden Volume 8 is his newest shoe from adidas, and along with the AE 1’s looks super futuristic.
The shoe is kind of sock like in the build, but a foamy rubber outside surrounds the shoe and creates an oval shape. When someone where’s this shoe it looks like an oval on their feet, and I think that is cool and something that proves that it shapes around the foot. Harden’s logo is not on the tongue like the AE 1’s and a lot of Nike shoes, and the three stripes are on the heel of the shoe giving it a very simple feel compared to a lot of loud looking basketball shoes nowadays.
These shoes were so popular on release that they recently sold out on Adidas’s website, a feat that only streetwear shoes normally accomplish. These two shoes have made big splashes in the look and feel department for a lot of college and pro players and are a testament to Adidas’s design team’s hard work.
Donovan Mitchell and Trae Young’s two signatures this year also looked great, and it seems that besides the Damian Lillard shoe Adidas’s designs are a breath of fresh air and something we’ve not seen much of this year. The two affirmation shoes are some of if not the best all around looking shoes on the market right now and so Adidas is looking at a bright future.
These new designs in my opinion are what is pushing Adidas over the edge right now in its competition with Nike in basketball shoes. If Adidas continues to keep their designs more futuristic and ahead of the curve on Nike we might see a shift in popularity very soon.
