THE OFFICIAL NIKE KOBE FOOTWEAR THREAD: RIP LEGEND 1978-2020. MAMBA FOREVER | 8-24-24

[macstizo]

looks pretty good but so far the reviews for hoopin in em have been meh...

 

[little mac]

I played 5 games in the Kobe AD Mid and my thoughts are:

Traction: 3/10 - although this was a moderately dusty court. When I wiped, the grip was there and there was nice bite and squeak, but that quickly went away after a trip or two down the court. Dust catcher for sure but they should be nice on clean courts.

Fit: 6/10 - lockdown was pretty much all there, zero heel slippage. a good comfortable fit. the toe box was rubbing down on me slightly.

cushioning: 6/10 - it was decent. I could feel the lunarlon running full length, on the heel especially and perhaps a hint of a zoom bag. but it wasn't particularly bouncy or phenomenal. it got the job done.

overall, this is how I envision the mentality or venomenon line to feel like. budget, standard run of the mill, get the job done shoe. not trashing this shoe, but for a Kobe signature model, it was disappointing.

my favorite kobes peformance wise are the IX EM, the 8s, the VI, V, and the 2k4s. the AD Mid is several tiers below those. Kobe line has taken a noticeable dip after his retirement. hoping for a turnaround soon.

I've heard speculation that as for the Kobe line, there isn't going to be anymore 'numbered' releases. That from here on out, it's all considered AD. I would think that if they ever decide to go 'retros', then it would be the AD pool for this Venomenon/EM level stuff, and retros separately. Again, this is pure SPECULATION, but I've heard it a couple places. Can anyone else confirm?

 

[cdubsdad]

https://sneakernews.com/2017/08/29/the-nike-kobe-ad-mid-rise-release-date/

 

[big b 33]

 

[Magic33]

Forefoot width is much better and the mid height and the padding is great. One thing I didn't like about the a.d. low was the seam on the sides of the sock liner , it caused irritation on some pairs I tried on. If the jacquard upper is true then I'm in for another pair. This material is soft but will stain easily.

I was thinking the same thing about the material. It feels like felt. And I was wondering can I even use a stain protector on it.

 

[marlee]

Is the "Rise" Navy or Black?

Navy.

 

[dru812002]

I hope we get a Carpe Diem colorway similar to the Kobe 4's. More like the prototypes with the black swoosh and purple outline.

 

[thapointguy]

Good they are available in store. Will pick up Saturday.

Looks black but navy is cool too.

 

[titang545]

Too many Kobes on the market. It's like Jordan brand and their plethora of non signature trash.

Yeah starting to saturate the market forreal, they can keep releasing though I still am only buying certain ones. More shoes to find sitting at Ross.

 

[liammo29]

Good luck finding any of those mamba mentality on discount

 

[mindmarathon]

I personally like the Kobe A.D. Mid Rise. Nothing fancy, but nothing too out of the ordinary like they're trying too hard. Simple is good. The shape of these is nice as well. At least they arent curling up looking like leprechaun shoes like the Kyrie 3 man i hate the Kyrie 3 they're hideous due to the curling up.

 

[cbfpunch]

got my pairs in and they're all going back. really not feeling the felt material and the sub-par cushioning. even flexing the toe area makes the upper dig into my foot so no thanks, not worth it to break in. the kobe line really is dead to me now. happily going back to the 4, 6, 8, 9, and 11 to ball in. yes, i'm salty lol.

 

[mindmarathon]

got my pairs in and they're all going back. really not feeling the felt material and the sub-par cushioning. even flexing the toe area makes the upper dig into my foot so no thanks, not worth it to break in. the kobe line really is dead to me now. happily going back to the 4, 6, 8, 9, and 11 to ball in. yes, i'm salty lol.

Damn bro you just put them on your foot, and based your decision on this? Don't you think you need to give them more of a test drive b4 you come to a conclusion? You don't hop into the drivers seat of a new whip and not want to test drive it because the seat is too high now do you? You adjust and then continue on lol . It's all good bro do you, but just remember some people read these comments and will throw shade on the kicks based on all the reviews they've read without even trying for themselves. That's what caused so much hate on the 1st A.D. and imho we're highly underrated. Thanks for your comment though

 

[liammo29]

Nightwing just posted a first look review and was very high on them as a performance shoe

 

[CosmicGhostRider]

I got my Detached pair in yesterday and took them straight to the court. I love them!

Thoughts:
+Really light
+Cushioning was surprisingly good
+When playing I didn't have to think about my feet at all.
+/- It was stiff to put on, but for some reason is super comfortable once on.
-Traction not up to par with older sig Kobes, but I was on a dusty court. Hopefully it's better on a clean court.
-Laces seemed a little short but it worked out because they kept my foot pretty secure and I didn't have to worry about tying my shoes.

All in all I would think the Kobe 11 is probably a better overall performer in regards to traction and materials, but these aren't that much of a step down from that in regards to performance.

They did the job for me and they're super clean on foot. Look good, play good.

 

[mindmarathon]

I got my Detached pair in yesterday and took them straight to the court. I love them!

Thoughts:
+Really light
+Cushioning was surprisingly good
+When playing I didn't have to think about my feet at all.
+/- It was stiff to put on, but for some reason is super comfortable once on.
-Traction not up to par with older sig Kobes, but I was on a dusty court. Hopefully it's better on a clean court.
-Laces seemed a little short but it worked out because they kept my foot pretty secure and I didn't have to worry about tying my shoes.

All in all I would think the Kobe 11 is probably a better overall performer in regards to traction and materials, but these aren't that much of a step down from that in regards to performance.

They did the job for me and they're super clean on foot. Look good, play good.

Thanks for the review. I can't wait to get mine in. I copped 3 pairs, but they're all in Dallas awaiting shipment since I live in Houston, where all the flooding is going on so while i see everyone and their daddies getting theirs in, mine are in limbo. (Ugh the torture)

Kobe XI are one of my fave performance wise, the only negative i have to say about the XI's which was fixed in the A.D. and A.D. NXT, was the way the shoes would come off while playing in games due to the heel cup not having much of a lock down. I can't tell you how many times they've come off my foot while playing, or seeing others have the same issue.But that was minor. Can't wait for my 3 A.D. mid to come in .

 

[cbfpunch]

Damn bro you just put them on your foot, and based your decision on this? Don't you think you need to give them more of a test drive b4 you come to a conclusion? You don't hop into the drivers seat of a new whip and not want to test drive it because the seat is too high now do you? You adjust and then continue on lol . It's all good bro do you, but just remember some people read these comments and will throw shade on the kicks based on all the reviews they've read without even trying for themselves. That's what caused so much hate on the 1st A.D. and imho we're highly underrated. Thanks for your comment though

i think trying out a new car and trying out new shoes are two different things but i understand the argument. i'm just at a point where i have so many shoes to ball in that i don't want to have another shoe that's so-so compared to the rest of what i have. i wore these shoes around the house and i will say that the lunarlon felt better than the first AD, the fit in the forefoot area was nicer, and the traction felt amazing. however, it was those things that i didn't like (materials, overall cushioning - the zoom, and the flexing of the upper) that lead me to decide that it isn't worth my time or money to play in them when i have other bball shoes i already love. you can call me spoiled and you can blame it on previous kobe models that don't have the 'AD' name attached to it.

 

[CosmicGhostRider]

Thanks for the review. I can't wait to get mine in. I copped 3 pairs, but they're all in Dallas awaiting shipment since I live in Houston, where all the flooding is going on so while i see everyone and their daddies getting theirs in, mine are in limbo. (Ugh the torture)

Kobe XI are one of my fave performance wise, the only negative i have to say about the XI's which was fixed in the A.D. and A.D. NXT, was the way the shoes would come off while playing in games due to the heel cup not having much of a lock down. I can't tell you how many times they've come off my foot while playing, or seeing others have the same issue.But that was minor. Can't wait for mine to come in .

Yeah I honestly really liked them. Man stay safe out there! I'm in San Antonio and luckily we only had a few days of rain.

That's true about the XI, this should have better lock down for you. XI's never came off when I hooped in them but I definitely would have that thought in my mind. Like I said earlier, I didn't have to think about the shoe or my feet at all when playing and that's about all I could ask for in a hoop shoe.

 

[mindmarathon]

i think trying out a new car and trying out new shoes are two different things but i understand the argument. i'm just at a point where i have so many shoes to ball in that i don't want to have another shoe that's so-so compared to the rest of what i have. i wore these shoes around the house and i will say that the lunarlon felt better than the first AD, the fit in the forefoot area was nicer, and the traction felt amazing. however, it was those things that i didn't like (materials, overall cushioning - the zoom, and the flexing of the upper) that lead me to decide that it isn't worth my time or money to play in them when i have other bball shoes i already love. you can call me spoiled and you can blame it on previous kobe models that don't have the 'AD' name attached to it.

I hope you don't regret sending them back. I have over 100 Kobe's so I too have a lot of shoes to wear/play in, but the more the merrier for me ha ha I'm a Kobe head. I hear these are super light and is most likely due to the material they chose to go with. Thanks for your input man.

 

[NickB11]

Really digging the "rise"...especially like the stitched swoosh.

 

[mindmarathon]

Really digging the "rise"...especially like the stitched swoosh.

I like the Kobe A.D. Mid Rise shoe, the style & design, the stitched swoosh, and the colors but not the combination of the colors. These colors look too much like a Cleveland Cavaliers jersey YUCK
NO Thanks JEFF

 

[NickB11]

I like the Kobe A.D. Mid Rise shoe, the style & design, the stitched swoosh, and the colors but not the combination of the colors. These colors look too much like a Cleveland Cavaliers jersey YUCK
NO Thanks JEFF

Ha...I can't unsee this now...thanks lol. I still might grab these but wonder if they will come out with more colorways.

 

[grittyman]

Got the "Passion" in today...

Initial impressions? On feet these feel like the regular Kobe AD's with softer material, spongier cushioning and a higher (but not necessarily noticeable) cut. Probably will give them a test run tomorrow evening at open gym. Materials don't feel premium at all, but I don't really care as long as they perform on court.

 

[Magic33]

Parts of them feel premium to me. The leather like portions. I'm not a fan of the felt though.



I'm liking the honesty pair in this clip. Didn't realize they were all that different. Mine have brail and not zoom.

 

[gwizzle]