If you have not tried out the Lebron 19 low, it may be one you want to go back and take a look at. A great bang for your buck for sure!
What is going on everyone? AirJayP here and were back with another performance review for you. As you can already tell we are going to be looking at how the Lebron 19 low performed for me on court. I purchased these for $60 with really no expectations and honestly was not even sure I would review them, but after I gave them a try I was very surprised!
Let's dive into each category and see what I liked and what maybe could have been a little better.
Traction: 4
The traction performed very well and offered great grip on all surfaces and types of courts as well. I basically played all indoors with these, but I did get a little outdoor work in them and they did just fine outdoors as well. The outsole offers great grip on all surfaces and I had no issues whether the court was clean, dirty, or dusty. The rubber and grooves are also pretty stiff which I believe will offer great durability over time as well. Laterally and vertically you are completely covered in these and I do not see you having any issues with these from a traction standpoint.
Fit: 5
As long as you get the correct size in these you are going to be good to go. I went true to size and it is basically a 1:1 fit for me. I would definitely recommend going true to size and even for me as I will a lot of times go down to an 11 for a snug fit; it is not really necessary with these as they fit just fine.
Materials: 4 (will vary on other cw's)
Let me start off by saying I have the safari cw as you can see in photos, but I originally bought these just for lifestyle wear and to have in my collection because I also own the 16 low safaris. As I mentioned before I was not purchasing these with the intentions of actually playing in them. The materials on these have many different panels with what I would imagine are different materials than on some of the other cw's. The upper on my pair is basically a fairly thin mesh, overtop a synthetic type material than runs around the shoe to the heel, and a nubuck/suede type material on the toe to almost the forefoot area. The toe area was where I was most concerned initially as I thought it would hold sweat and not be very breathable. It did hold some sweat, but was also more breathable that I had expected it to be. The mesh area gave me no trouble and I thought it was a good choice of material on this model. The tongue is nicely padded and feels great on foot. The internal lining overall of the shoe is nicely padded as well and is comfortable while wearing/playing in these. Overall the materials are pretty nice on these, something I definitely would probably wear more as a casual shoe than a on court one, but if you are like me and like playing in wild color ways on court, you are not going to be disappointed in these.
Lockdown: 5
The lockdown was probably my favorite or most unexpected surprise to the shoe in my opinion. As I said before I really had zero expectations for these as there were no intentions to even play in them. I also thought upon first glance the lockdown was going to be something I did not like and just would not work out for my personal preferences on court. Once you get these on and laced to your liking you are pretty much locked into the shoe. You know I am a big fan of normal/traditional lacing as you can get them tightened to your liking and it makes a great difference here. The eyelets run thru the mesh overlay and when tightening the laces it offers tightening of the whole forefoot and basically all the way up to the lower part of the ankle. The heel offers nice padding on the inside which wraps around the heel and achilles and for me actually served a purpose in the shoe. When tightened up I felt comfort and really no movement in the heel area. A lot of times when shoes have this padding in this area my heel will move around a lot and it will cause blisters. This was no issue on these because you are actually locked into the shoe in the heel area. As I said before the lockdown was a huge surprise for me and one I was not expecting. Playing in lows are not always my favorite, but how these models are being made now, it gives you no option but to adapt and like them as they have figured out how to get you as locked into a low as you used to could only get out of a mid/high top. I was definitely pleased with the lockdown on these 19 lows.
Cushion/Comfort: 4
Let me start off by saying these are very comfortable on and off the basketball court. They are very close though to that over cushion liking on court that I do not like, but as I keep getting older I need more cushion so these are getting a 4 out of 5. The heel on the 19 offers a max air unit which is visible on the side of the shoe. This is the area that is almost to plush for my liking, but at the same time is very comfortable and feels great on court. A better way of saying this is, if you like a lot of cushion in your heel you will definitely like these. The shoe also offers full length react cushioning which I really enjoyed on these. React for me is soft and plush, but not to soft and offers quite a bit of responsiveness. It reminds me in a way of a softer "bounce" cushion from Adidas, but not as plush as boost. I know we are not talking an Adidas sneaker here, but my point is I always preferred playing in bounce over boost, but would rather have boost casually than bounce. That is kind of the case or point I'm saying here that I would prefer react cushion over a full length max air or a usual cushion system that is used on a Lebron model. In short, if you have enjoyed playing in Lebron models in the past I do not see any reason you would not like playing in these. Are they as cushioned as the high top model? No, they are not, but it sure is a good take down with a lot of cushioning for a low top model.
Weight: 4
Here is an area that I do not always specifically separate or make a category for. I think it was needed here. The last few years I have skipped out on the Lebron line in general due to most of them feeling too bulky for my liking. I am referring to the main model, not the lows. I once again skipped on the 19s this year, as after I tried them on; they just were to bulky for my liking. Fast forward to these lows and that was one concern I did have. Would these be to bulky for me? In all honesty they are still not as light or to the liking I would really like, but they are way lighter and not as clunky on court as I expected. If I were to describe them it would be bulky, but still ok for guard use or to play in. I would prefer the KD 15 or a Kyrie model, but if you passed on the regular 19s due to same reasons as I have explained, these are definitely a lot different. I do not have the exact weight differences or specs, but from initial feel there is a big difference in feel on foot.
Overall: 4
The Lebron 19 low was a shoe that I have said a few times in this review; I just did not really have high hopes for my liking, but even had no intentions of even playing in them. After I got them in, and tried them on I thought maybe I will give these a try. This shoe absolutely shocked me from every standpoint. Lockdown was definitely the strongest point for me, but some may choose cushion as it is a very nice feel on court or even casually as well. You will also get a very nice traction setup and great shoe for all surfaces no matter how you play. These have been out for a while now, but it is a shoe I have honestly not seen a lot on foot while playing. My point here is, I do not think these got enough looks. At this point you can also get these for a great deal. I mentioned this earlier, but I actually got mine on sale for around $60. If you can pick up a pair of these for that and are planning to play in them; you are getting an absolute deal in a basketball shoe. Are there better basketball shoes out there that I am currently and have played in? Sure. Are there many better than I have paid $60 for, not to many that I can recall. I really enjoyed these Lebron 19 lows, and it just goes to show you. Do not always judge a shoe by looks as it may just surprise you how it performs on court. These surely did just that!
Thank You For Checking Out This Review!
Have A Great Week And As Always Happy Hooping!
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