The Nike Zoom Shift is one of the best-looking budget model sneakers Nike has to offer. Coming in at only $100, how will these babies perform on the hardwood? Let’s find out.
The Nike Zoom Shift features a multi-directional, diamond plate-like traction pattern. It is slightly below acceptable and nothing more. The gray area on the outsole grips the floor decently but the black pods on the outsole collect dust like nobody’s business. It is very inconsistent and very frustrating — even wiping the outsole is a bit of a hassle. I have to wipe multiple times in one dead ball situation to remove the dust from the bottom of my sneakers.
Outdoors, the traction performed like it was an entirely different outsole. The traction is on point outdoors. However, I do not recommend hooping outside in these due to the outsole’s durability.
Can you say nonexistent? The Phylon midsole and the Zoom Air unit in the forefoot are garbage. I have never had a problem with this type of cushion setup until now. I typically get a good combination of court feel, responsiveness, and impact protection, but in the Nike Zoom Shift that is not the case.
My feet were on fire hooping in these — I’m talking sore for about two days! The Phylon is dense, and the impact protection is lacking something serious. Have you ever played on bricks? This is one of the worst setups I’ve ever felt in a shoe other than some Timberland boots. Shoot, I think Timberland boots may be more comfortable than the Nike Zoom Shift!
The best features of the Nike Zoom Shift are its materials. The shoe sports a lightweight textile upper, neoprene at the tongue area, and some fuse overlays on the high wear areas. This is going to help protect the shoe against toe drags, and everyday wear and tear. The materials are straightforward and they worked well on this sneaker.
The one-piece bootie on the Nike Zoom Shift runs true to size. It’s a bit snug, even for those with narrow feet. For those with wide feet I suggest you go up a 1/2 size. It is highly recommended that you try to try these on before purchasing, because like I said it is snug and may be too snug for some. However, one of the positive of the snug fit is the lockdown. There is no getting out of the shoe until you take them off.
The support mainly comes from the fit. It is critical to wear your correct size; you do not want to be slipping and sliding all over the place inside the shoe. Having a loose fit could make you vulnerable to an ankle injury, and I know no one wants that.
The padded ankle collar created a comfortable bed for my heel, while the external TPU heel counter secured my heel by acting as a seat belt. I didn’t experience any heel slipping with this setup. The small extended TPU wing on the outside of the shoe did not affect the support at all. It is a useless piece and, in my opinion, only there for aesthetic purposes.
The midsole cupped the outside of my foot and worked together with that snug fit to keep me on top of the footbed.
While the Nike Zoom Shift is aesthetically pleasing, the inconsistent traction and the brick-like cushion makes the shoe very unpleasant on-court. The experience isn’t enjoyable at all so I won’t be taking the Nike Zoom Shift on court. However, I am rocking them to my local grocery store with no hesitation.
That brick was savage. You might be sued by Nike.
Good review tho!
Hahaha thanks man lets hope I don’t get sued
Here’s what I want from a Nike budget shoe: thick outdoor herringbone and top-loaded zoom. It won’t cost any more to manufacture than this shoe. The zoom live comes close, but it needed a bigger zoom unit and an outdoor-worthy outsole.
Nike made, like, 10 shoes this year that look similar and have forefoot zoom, but none of them really stand out. They should take this as a challenge: make a budget model that costs the same as this to make, but is an absolute performance beast with a pretty comfy cushion that you can feel. Use a softer phylon, too: most of your customers aren’t 6’10”, 250.
Overall…..this shoe looks very familiar, albeit with minor changes. Oh yeah, it looks like a regurgitated “KD Trey, pick your number” and insert it here.