Making 30 signature shoes is kind of a big deal. Like, it’s never been done before type of big deal. How did Jordan Brand do with the Air Jordan XXX (30) in terms of pure performance? Not bad. Not good. But not bad.
Traction
Keep ’em clean…really clean. Seriously, this setup was just as disappointing as the Kobe 11. And much like the Kobe 11, when the soles are clean then you’re getting some amazing grip. But, and there’s always a but: when the floor has even the slightest amount of dust then the Air Jordan XXX outsole somehow locates it and invites it over for a party. Would a solid rubber outsole be better than the translucent? It’s possible, but we won’t know unless they decide to release pairs with solid rubber outsoles. So, for right now, just be aware that you may or may not receive great traction. When it’s good, it’s really good. When it’s not, well, you know how it goes.
Cushion
The tooling remains the same as the previous Air Jordan — the Air Jordan XX9 — so the cushion setup is pretty much identical. However, there was one notable change that aided in much smoother heel to toe transition. The TPU that wrapped the midsole on the XX9 was removed at the heel. It’s still present at the forefoot so you won’t have any instability issues, but the heel TPU was removed. This allows the heel portion to compress so they don’t feel as clunky as the XX9’s did while starting out.
The good thing about this change is that the heel compresses and is very comfortable, despite lacking any Air cushion. The downside is that the foam they used is a little too soft so you may experience some instability there. A slightly firmer foam would have solved this issue while still maintaining that smoother heel to toe transition.
Forefoot cushion is Unlocked Zoom Air, and it feels awesome. Zero complaints there. I feel like I say this every time I discuss Unlocked Zoom, but I’ll say it again: If you have never experienced it…you haven’t experienced how awesome Zoom Air truly is.
Materials
Jordan Brand keeps renaming their own tech, even when it doesn’t change. First it was Performance Woven, then Flyweave, and now they’re just calling it Jacquard. Either way, it’s a woven upper and I love it. I loved it on the XX9 and I still love it on the Air Jordan XXX.
The upper is a little thinner than it was on the XX9’s, and initially feels a little cheap, but it’s held up so far and shows no signs of giving into the on-court beating I’ve subjected it to. Jordan Brand has added a toe cap for additional durability from toe-drags, and while I think the piece is visually unappealing, it does it’s job so I can’t complain. It’s actually one of my favorite parts of the upper from a functional standpoint because I can drag my soles across the toe cap and clean off the dust that the outsoles have collected without needing to touch my shoes.
Lastly, they’ve added Flyknit to the interior lining and ankle collar. This stretches around your ankle, but it also causes major discomfort due to the flimsy nature of the material. Additionally, JB constructed the heel notches out of it. This section bunches up and causes some painful blistering on the Achilles. But I’ll go over that more in the fit section.
Fit
The Air Jordan XXX fits true to size, and this is the one area that I’ll say has been improved over the XX9 — it’s more in line with the XX9 Low. The fit is snug and improved. Wide footers will want to try them on as the forefoot area is very form-fitting — some may find this uncomfortable. Lockdown has been improved due to the tightened up forefoot as well.
The back half of the shoe is horrible. No other way around it. Breaking in this section of the shoe is long and painful. Those heel notches I was talking about in the material section, yeah, they will kill your Achilles. This issue will go away, eventually. It may take a few days, or a few weeks — depends on the pair. My pair took me two weeks before I was able to lace them up all the way without any pain. I’m not sure how this shoe was wear-tested and approved the way it currently is, but whoever tested the shoe and said they were perfect was sadly mistaken. However, once you break your pair in it’ll fit like a glove. Just make sure you’re prepared for some discomfort in the beginning.
Support
With a more snug and secure fitting upper the support will be slightly better than it was on the XX9. We’re not talking leaps and bounds better, but just enough to where you’ll notice a difference between the two if you’ve worn them both. Again, I’d say this is on par with the Air Jordan XX9 Low. Everything else is exactly the same as the XX9. The midfoot, the outsole base, outrigger, everything — exactly the same as the Air Jordan XX9.
Air Jordan XXX (30) Overall
If you loved the Air Jordan XX9 then you’ll likely enjoy the Air Jordan XXX just the same. Its traction might disappoint in comparison to the XX9, but if you play on a clean floor then you’ll have nothing to worry about. Was anything improved over the Air Jordan XX9? Yes, the forefoot fit and containment, but that’s about it. Not enough to really say these are a “game changer,” and definitely not enough to recommend over the XX9 or XX9 Low. In fact, I’d rather play in the XX9 Low over the Air Jordan XXX any day of the week. I wouldn’t say the Air Jordan XXX is a horrible hoop shoe, but it sure as hell is a disappointment.
After the XX8 and XX9, you’d think the XXX would have been a banger. Instead, you have to think of them as the [Tobey Maguire] Spider-Man trilogy of the Air Jordan line; the XX8 being Spider-Man, the XX9 Spider-Man 2, and the 30 being Spider-Man 3. Yeah, there were some redeeming qualities, but nothing you’d want to brag about. Here’s hoping the Air Jordan 31 brings the Air Jordan line back to being the pinnacle of performance footwear.
I think I might know why the Achilles pillows dig in so much. I just got my pair today and had the same problem, but solved it my taking my index finger and pulling the middle of the Achilles pillows up and then sliding my foot in…problem solved for me and one of the best heel lockdown I’ve ever had in a basketball shoes. Hope this helps
Shoe was solid! And didn’t disappoint. Everything about it was great. But the only thing is. The midsole is SEPERATING from the upper! Yes! SEPERATING. The glue just didn’t bond the materials together. I got them online, and I still have the box and receipt. Would they exchange or refund it still?
LOLOLOL
When we thought this was gonna be 29 Plus
It’s actually 29 Minus
Great job jordan brand
Lol, that really captures it.
Hahaha
One of the first times I’ve had a completely different experience than your own. I have some video and photos of extremely dusty courts and it stuck really well for me. Also I was able to break them in with the first 2h of play. Lastly, that heel cushion made a huge difference for me as a big guy upon landings.
I definitely agree quality control in the heel area was an issue but I’ve had an Achilles rupture and these were great. Last, I found the entire heel of the shoe to be a lot more rigid and supportive which I was surprised that wasn’t mentioned.
Love your reviews and huge fan but just wanted to put out my experience. I concur though, still a let down from the last 3 years and for the price point.
Nice work on the review. The SpiderMan trilogy comparison makes a lot of sense.
JB some potential on making the XXX special. since they have thought of putting some XXX paintings under the shoe, I just can’t believe they forgot to incorporate the XXX as a design of the outsole or that for that matter the traction pattern. or maybe recreate their ZOOM, AIR, MAXAIR cushion into something of a XXX pattern. they got a full year or two to think of that and to recreate. yet they chose to get lazy and re-tool the 29s. I would understand if they could have just postponed the XXXs if they run into some problems rather than release a disappointment as a signature model for JB.
Just. Get. The. 29s.
Thank you for the review Nightwing. Very informative again!
I wanted to give the XXX the benefit of the doubt, but hearing about the shoe is panning out is a bit disappointing as it hasn’t quite added up to the a properly tweaked 29. Like, that’s the safe way out and JB kinda came up short on it.
I mean it happens, the whole inadvertent”going backwards” in product design for any specialty, but it kinda sucks that the 30th Jordan is gonna go down as forgettable.
whoa crap I need to learn how to type. Edit: “I wanted to give the XXX the benefit of the doubt, but hearing about how the shoe is panning out is a bit disappointing as it hasn’t quite added up to a properly tweaked 29. “
Im kinda disapointed, nightwing what about the air max audacity??
Are you still gonna review those??
That review is coming.
Thanks man, i’ll be waiting.
Dude, maybe you pick up a bad pair or something cause traction is pretty solid… my experience though.
Cushion still suck because of the heel , big set back from 28 , but it has smooth transition … imagine decent amount of full length boost in midsole on these …. dreams … collaboration between nike and adidas … maybe one day !
I am a wide footer and I tried these on at footlocker. I am an 11/11.5 2E, so I wear 12 in Jordans. The fuse on the toebox of the 30 just dug into my foot. Be wary. The 29 low should be better.
Love the review My dude! Spiderman…*Peter Griffin laugh*.
Why do brands stick with the translucent outsoles? it performs worse (sometimes). it starts looking shitty as soon as you have worn it twice. it might just be me but I don’t like it
It offers a huge performance benefit when in proper conditions. Looks good too. Just doesn’t age well.
The spiderman comment…HAHAHAHA. Literally just spewed my beer while reading this at the airport.
mr foamer did mention that there was a slightly tighter knit for additional support and durability
he also stated the traction was great and described it as a “juiced up version of the 29s”
this shoe might be excellent from a big guy’s perspective
Or they might suck from a person that can’t run fast, jump High or stop hard.
Or you could have nothing better to do than to troll behind a computer.
Ouch, this coming from someone that doesn’t play with me to even know.
Dwelly, before you comment again, you send us a video of you playing. Not XBox, BASKETBALL. When we get it, and decide if you can play, you can talk again. But not until you send it.
My 30s are performing awesome, I agree with the traction tho, little sloppy at times. But I’m getting these weird stains on the upper. They look the same colour as the black fade, but I clean them off with a sneaker cleaner and they reappear after a few hours. Not really sure what’s going on. Also the lateral support thing on the forefoot, started to separate from the upper, so I had to glue it back in place. Anyone else having these problems?? Any tips on how to get rid of these stains and clean upper?
Maybe it’s dye from your socks? The shoe offers no ventilation so that might be the problem.
Nightwing what basketball shoes do you recommend for me, i wear an ankle brace and need a lot of cushion, and i play point guard.
Night wing, you always keep it really real, unlike some other sites. That’s why you get the most respect. Most definitely appreciate your work on this one
Hey Chris,
You and KickGenius are my favorite hoop shoe reviewers because you guys don’t sugarcoat anything and just keep it real. Which makes me very curious to why Nike/Jordan Brand didn’t invite you guys to the Jordan XXX event…cause I definitely think y’all should have been there! Do you think that had anything to do with it? Maybe they knew you wouldn’t like the shoe? At least that’s what the guys from KickGenius think. Let me know what you think if you get a chance. Keep doing what you doing guys!
I can’t speak for the brand, but the way it looked was that they invited people that would tell the story the way they wanted. People that are honest and see through bs disrupt their flow which isn’t good for business. It doesnt take a genius to see that the XXX was a XX9 rip-off.
I’m glad KickGenius are being a little more objective these days. At one point a long while ago, I thought they were almost pro Nike/Jordan Brand, but the past year or so, they seem a lot better with no hints of bias towards certain brands.
I’m not sure if I was wrong about them being biased in the past (maybe I was), and maybe they genuinely didn’t like the performance of the shoes from brands such as UA, Adidas, but yeah, I like their reviews in the past year or so because they just seem more genuine to me.
In my honest opinion, I love what the Air Jordan XXX looks like as far as style, support and fit goes. In terms of the fit of the shoe, I have narrow feet so going for my true shoe size (US Size 9.5) is not an issue for me. For support, the snug-like fit would probably suit me just fine since playing the XX9 felt a little loose after the short break-in period. Lastly, I absolutely LOVE the style of the Air Jordan XXX. It just so much sleeker than the XX9. Plus I dislike how the back sticks out on the XX9.
Even though you, Mr. Foamer Simpson, and Kickgenius performance reviews are great Nightwing, I don’t have to agree this review but I highly respect your take on the Air Jordan XXX. If I had the chance to significantly improve on the Air Jordan XXX, these are the key improvements:
1. A one piece seamless flyknit/jacquard woven glove-like upper with the dynamic fit actually woven within the jacquard pattern. The upper being built slightly similar to the Nike Flyknit LunarEpic with improved padding on the Achilles heel.
2. A 3D printed Pebax moderator to reduce the weight and improve of the FlightSpeed plate
3. Targeted Unlocked Zoom Air placed on the forefoot and lunarlon cushioning to improve on heel-toe transition and impact protection.
4. Bring back the traction pattern of the XX8
These are just some key improvements to ponder about
I picked up the AJ XXX this morning and its my first pair of the AJ XXX line and reading all these reviews kinda got me a lil bugged out on the performance wise. I go pretty hard on the court blowing out quit a bit of pairs in the last 3-4 years. I pooped 2 pairs of my AJ XX8’s. and my YOTH Melo’s loved that shoe over the XX9. The XX9 was good ballin shoe but found myself at time sliding on defensive stops from side to side I almost did the splits a few times due to the bottom middle sole piece that is in between the front and back area’s. So after my playoff game and possible championship game I will leave my feedback on the AJ XXX “STEALTH”.
I have a black cat colorway. Any tips on how to remove stains on the toe box? Near the jumpman logo? Thank you in advance