Steph Curry’s brand with Under Armour, which launched back in 2020, has been very solid up until now. Steph Curry’s shoes, in general, have been very consistent on-court performers over the years, and all of his shoes have offered similar performance features.

Because Curry shoes cater to Steph’s playing style, they always look to provide great traction, a secure, stable, and supportive ride, and low-profile, neutral-feeling reactive cushioning. This blend of performance features became all the more consistent with the introduction of Under Armour’s Flow technology to the Curry signature line in the Curry 8. Flow has been used in every Curry shoe since then and has allowed on-court performance to remain almost perfectly uniform over the last 4 years.

Now, one thing Curry shoes have never done is feature great cushioning…until now. The Curry 12 is seasoned with the same proprietary blend of “Curry” features, but, it’s also equipped with an updated and improved version of Flow. So, let’s dive into the performance review and see why the Curry 12 is the best Curry shoe to date.

UPDATE: The Under Armour Curry 12 made it on our list of the best basketball shoes of the year, our list of the best low top basketball shoes, and our list of the best-tractioned basketball shoes.

Curry 12 Review

Curry 12 Traction

The traction on the Curry 12 is elite. The grip the Curry 12 provides on clean indoor surfaces is so good, it’s almost too good. Chris calls this type of traction “pop your hip out traction”. That’s how effective this setup is. The Curry 12s traction is so spectacular, and a slight improvement on the already great traction of the Curry 11, because of a slight modification in the chemical formulation of the Flow foam.

When you have the Curry 12 in hand it’s easy to feel that this Flow midsole is unlike any Flow midsole of the past. The foam is tackier and it has a different texture compared to other iterations.

However, this setup does have its drawbacks. On indoor courts that aren’t cleaned regularly, shoes that feature Flow will tend to pick up dust quickly. That tacky foam bites the court better than many other materials, but it also ends up being a bit of a magnet for dust and debris. This isn’t a huge issue of course, just make sure to clean the bottoms of your shoes regularly and you should be good to go (and maybe get maintenance to do a once-over on your court).

Also, Flow isn’t the most durable setup out there and therefore isn’t ideal for outdoor use. The good news is, if you are planning on playing with these on concrete, it does wear down uniformly and should offer decent performance all the way to the end.

Curry 12 Cushion

Cushioning is the aspect of the Curry 12 that has seen the biggest upgrade, and it’s all thanks to the updated Flow formulation. The Curry 12, similar to the Curry 11, is equipped with a dual-density midsole. The outer shell of that midsole is constructed with a more dense and stable Flow foam, and within that carrier, there is a full-length, softer, and bouncier iteration of Flow foam right underfoot. Both of these foams are much more plush than previous versions.

This setup is reminiscent of ETPU-based cushioning systems and feels much more akin to Boost (adidas) or Boom (Way of Wade). It’s comfortable, bouncy, and fluid underfoot while maintaining all the stability and court feel the shoe needs. This is easily the most comfortable and well-cushioned Curry we have ever tested (second place goes to the Curry 6).

Cushioning is also the reason this is the most versatile Curry shoe we’ve seen. Curry sneakers are usually very “guard-centric”, and their cushioning setups are geared toward lighter, shifter players (like Steph). This new dual-density flow midsole is much more democratic, and should accommodate a wider variety of playing styles.

Curry 12 Materials

Materials on the Curry 12 are nothing special, but perform very well on court. The shoe’s upper is built primarily with a light and breathable engineered mesh that provides adequate containment and it conforms well to your foot. There are even a couple of suede overlays on the forefoot and heel of the shoe, so you do get a hint of premium materials.

One odd aspect of the Curry 12 is the tongue. It’s constructed with a neoprene-style material, that looks like it is heavily perforated, but isn’t. If Under Armour had perforated the area of the shoe it would have boosted the ventilation of the shoe, and reduced the shoe’s weight slightly, but, they didn’t. On a positive note, it’s well-padded and will help alleviate lace pressure.

Curry 12 Support

As in most Curry shoes, support is top-tier. Starting at the bottom, we have a very wide and flat sole, which is equipped with a substantial outrigger as well. This provides a very stable base from which to make our moves on court. The new and improved midsole remains super stable and is equipped with several torsional augmentations to keep you stable and agile on court.

In the forefoot of the shoe, 3 strips of TPU span the width of the shoe. This helps the shoe to remain snappy on forefoot-heavy moves on courts (think of quickly coming off a screen and resetting for a jumper). On top of that, we have a more traditional TPU midfoot shank plate that boosts torsional rigidity.

Moving to the upper of the shoe, we find several portions of the Flow midsole wrapping around the upper in the heel and the forefoot. This style of build works great to keep your foot well-contained and on the footbed as you make your cuts and changes of direction on court. Lastly, we have a beefy external heel counter that will keep your ankle securely locked down as you play.

One interesting aspect of the heel of the Curry 12 is the curved shape (away from the foot). If you’ve ever played in a shoe that irritated your Achilles tendon, you’ll understand why they decided to go with this build.

Curry 12 Fit

The Curry 12 fits true to size, so go with whatever size you usually use with Under Armour, and you should be good to go. The Curry 12 might also be widefoot-friendly. There is a little extra space in this shoe, but our suggestion for wide footers is to try these on in-store first.

Curry 12 Overall

The Curry 12 is currently the best Curry basketball shoe hands down. With this shoe, you’re getting everything you have come to know and love from Curry’s signature shoes with better cushioning and better traction. Under Armour was able to achieve this impressive result by paying attention to the actual science that goes into designing performance footwear and making a small adjustment.

But the story doesn’t end there. This small but critical change also makes this shoe accessible to a much wider audience than any other Curry of the past, as this shoe will suit the on-court requirements of a wider range of hoopers.

ALL OF THIS FOR $20 LESS THAN LAST YEARS MODEL!

It’s safe to say that the Curry 12 has a good chance of becoming the best basketball shoe of 2024.

Curry 12

The Curry 12 is currently the best Curry basketball shoe hands down. With this shoe, you're getting everything you have come to know and love from Curry's signature shoes with better cushioning and better traction.

Product Brand: Under Armour

Editor's Rating:
9.5

Pros

• Elite traction
• Improved and excellent cushioning
• Best Curry shoe to date

Cons

• Not well suited for outdoor use