How wild it is for me to think this is the 22nd sneaker in the Lebron signature line. Time sure does go by fast! Let's find out how these worked on court!
What is going on everyone?? AirJayP is back here and as titled we are going to check out how the Lebron 22 performed for me on court. I have always been a pretty big fan of the Lebron line in general, and some of them I will even wear casually from time to time. Lots of great models and CWs from the line, but let's get into what you are here for the 22's performance-wise.
Fit: 3/5
Sizing in general from many brands has been a little off for me recently. The sizing here is not terrible as I went with my normal down half in my hoop shoes. I had a little movement within, mostly in the heel, but I think the overall build of the shoe just had sort of an awkward feel on my foot. I would recommend your previous Lebron sizing, especially if you played in the 20's or 21's. I did have somewhat of an issue in both of those models, but with tight lacing, I was able to correct it. With this model, though I couldn't seem to get it right, we will get into that a little more in the lockdown category.
Aesthetics: 4/5
I am speaking specifically on the cw I have which is the "Christmas" cw. I love what they did with the mismatched pairs that truly give off Christmas vibes. The laces also give off a snow-type vibe with the fuzzy look as well is a nice touch to these. This CW in some ways does seem a little more premium than some of the others I have seen in hand, and is almost a pair that I would wear casually at Christmas time instead of playing in on court with the setup. The laces I personally would need to change out to get better performance, which we will talk about a little later. I am also not sure about all cw's, but these do feature a translucent outsole which is very cool to go along with the CW, but did hinder these a little performance-wise. If we are talking straight looks of this Cw though.. I dig them a lot!!
Traction: 3/5
Moving along, let's talk about how the traction performed for me. This is not a comparison review, but I will say I liked the setup much better on the 20's and 21's than I did with these. I am not sure if it was just because of the translucent outsole and other CWs may offer better results, but I just didn't get what I have normally gotten from the Lebron line with these. I picked up quite a bit of dust and also had some issues with cutting, etc as well. I will say though, I played in them once outdoors and the traction worked much better for me outside, and I was impressed with the durability as well. They don't even look as if I have ever played outdoors in them. The 20's & 21's were near perfect for me traction-wise, and I was just expecting a lot more from these. Once again, are they terrible? no, but they just aren't the 20s or 21s.
Lockdown: 3/5
The lockdown of the shoe was another kind of sub-par area for me, and once again something on the previous two models specifically I had gotten much better performance from. As mentioned in the aesthetics section, some of my issues I believe came from something as simple as the laces. The fuzzy type laces that came in these just wouldn't allow me to get these to the tightness of my liking. With that being said it offered me movement within the shoe, especially in the heel area. I mentioned this in the fit, and I really do not think it was a fit issue, but a lockdown issue. The sneaker does offer a plastic plate in the midsole to help with stability, but I just could never get the absolute locked-in feel I am looking for out of these.
Cushion: 3/5
We are gonna kind of separate this into a few parts here. First, let's talk about how these feel on foot. These are definitely a low-top sneaker, but when wearing them I almost feel as if I am wearing a mid. They do feel somewhat bulky for a low-top. I don't get the low-to-ground feel or much court feel at all out of these. With that being said you do get an optimal amount of cushion out of these in my opinion, and for some that is going to be awesome! I have always been a bigger fan of court feel than cushion, but if it's a low especially I don't necessarily want a bulky feel or one that has me feeling like I am standing overtop of the shoe my foot is in. Now, for the tech, the sneaker features a large forefoot air zoom unit which you can definitely feel as well as a bottom-loaded air zoom unit in the heel. Once again I am trying for this not to be a comparison review, even though I keep comparing.. The 20 and 21 felt to me like we were headed more toward a guard-type model with those sneakers. The 22s kind of take me back to the older model Lebron days, but in a low-top form. These will definitely give you impact protection, and a cushioned feel. They are actually quite comfortable on foot, and I did think that was a nice touch. For my overall play style and what I am looking for though, these were just a little too cushioned in the way the sneaker was set up for me.
Materials: 4/5
I had no real issues from a materials standpoint. They were breathable, durable, and comfortable on foot. The upper on this cw does look and feel more premium than other cw's in my opinion. The materials also felt as if over time they had molded nicely towards my foot. The sneaker overall is once again a little on the bulky or heavier side. Not all of that is directly related to just the materials, but also to the build of the shoe. Not a ton to really put into detail here other than you have some pretty nice materials that give off some premium vibes, and they do feel nice on foot.
Overall: 3/5
To be completely honest here, I was a little disappointed in the Lebron 22. Is it a terrible basketball shoe on court? Definitely not, but after how much fun I had in the 20s and 21s I just expected a little bit more from these. You do get a nice cushioned ride on court, and one that we have come to be used to with any Lebron model. I do think the traction was very lacking compared to almost every previous pair I can think of. The lockdown was also a little lacking, and I just overall felt like the pair wouldn't work out for me over the long term. Maybe since this cw has a few different aspects than other models including the translucent outsole, fuzzy style laces, etc. there would be a different result on court for me in a different pair. Unless there is another cw that drops in the playoffs, etc that I just really love then I will probably wait to try out the 23's. There are definitely worse shoes on the shelves right now than the 22's, but there are also some better options that I like playing in. Have you played in a pair? What do you think about them, and how would you relate them to some of the most recent Lebron models on court?? Let me know over on Instagram!
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