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Lillard is one of my favorite players in the NBA despite the fact that he shot down my Houston Rockets last year. He carried the Adidas Rose brand while Rose was out so I was hoping they would have the same awesome fit and feel as the Rose line. Adidas used fantastic materials and built these with great quality but they need to tweak some things to make them a sig player worthy.

PROS: Price, smooth transition, traction, high quality materials and build, stable

CONS: Heel slippage, side to side movement, pain In the ass lacing system 

I suggest going half a size down for better fit.

Here is how the DLillard did in the rising star sig shoe shootout

Rising star sig shoe shootout

 

TRACTION

Adidas did a great job with the traction on these as they took the forefoot pattern of the Rose 5 and tweaked it with the same rubber compound. They added some tiny ribs to the outer edge which I could actually feel on court.

They also extended the pattern all the way down the sole

Traction is awesome in these although they aren’t as squeaky as I thought they would be. I’d say they are just as good or better than the Rose 5 simply bc the pattern is extended throughout the shoe. I didn’t have to wipe at all to get these to grab the floor from day one even on the dusty YMCA floors.

CUSHIONING 

These feature full length Adiprene which is basically old but effective Adidas tech.  It isn’t my favorite cushioning but it works fine and you can tell it is full length which makes the transitions smooth.  If you haven’t tried it, Adiprene has a very muted feeling and is somewhat bouncy.  To me it feels like the gel like blue rubber that goes in those Dr Scholls inserts. It disperses the impact  well but just doesn’t have that fun factor like Zoom Air, Boost, and Micro G.  I’m sure it helped keep the costs down for the Lillard 1.0 though and I’m sure Lillard fans and Dame himself are happy with the choice. 





The insoles top to bottom : Rose 5, Rose 4, Lillard 1.0. It about 3/4 thickness of the Rose 4 insole which gives it some nice step in comfort.   FIT

I bought my normal 11 and a 10.5 just in case to see which fit me better and it is a good thing I did. The sz 11 left me with my preferred length in the toe box of one finger width from biggest to end of the toe box while the 10.5 gave me about half that space.  I started out playing in the Sz 11 but found my foot slipping inside the shoe on hard cuts regardless of how tight I laced up the shoes. My heel slipped a noticeable amount as well, almost as much as the KD 7 and I figured out that the unless I laced the shoes perfectly, the fit,especially in the heel was going to be sloppy. I could get pretty good lockdown when I laced it correctly but it really shouldn’t be that difficult.  The problem I have with the lacing system is that there is no friction in the eyelets to keep the laces from shifting and loosening when you’re lacing up.  Every time I would get the laces set the way I wanted, the moment I would tie them up, they would unloosen.  I figured out a way to get the laces tied correctly by holding the second to last lace set in my fingers while tying up the top laces but that’s one too many steps for such a basic task. 



Lace locks should be mandatory on these shoes. On top of that there isn’t much padding at the top of the tongue so I could feel some lace pressure if I didn’t get them tied perfectly but it was not bothersome. Off my soap box, I still had slippage on side to side movements and heel slippage so I decided to use the 10.5 and sacrifice my big toe and the heel slippage was greatly reduced and the side to side movement was eliminated as well. It still wasn’t 100% lockdown for me but it wasn’t a deterrent either. There will be some slippage bc the inside of the heel area doesn’t have any notches or foam to hold the heel place. I suggest going down half a size to get a better fitter unless you really have flintstone feet or really need more length in the toe box.



as you can see there is some padding to keep the heel in place side to side but no real contours or padding to keep them from moving up and down.

The funny thing about the Lillard 1.0 is that it is a similar sock set up as the Hyperrev but just not executed as well.  I love techfit so I was surprised this didn’t feel aquasock secure like the Hyperrev. 





Here is the Hyperrevs set up





See how the notches extend all the way around the heel ? These kept my heel locked in perfectly .

SUPPORT AND STABILITY

Support was good since it a very stable shoe with a nice wide sole.  It passed my heel test (see my other reviews) since the cushioning is fairly  firm as well.  I wouldn’t say it is the most supportive shoe though since the heel counter isn’t that stiff and my heel was constantly slipping. I can’t risk turning an ankle since I am no longer wolverine like and take months to get over a sprain .  CONTAINMENT

The Lillard 1.0 has a pretty thick upper so containment was good overall but I feel it needed some additional support like an extended midsole at the forefoot to keep the foot from sliding out of the footbed.  I could feel my foot push out of the shoe on hard cuts (I had the same problem with the Hyperrev 2014, Hyperdunk 2013) where it isn’t a deterrent but just an annoyance.  There just isn’t anything hard or rigid holding the foot in .



 I understand that shoe manufactuers are trying to save weight but they need to take a cue from the tennis shoe designers and add a bit more support to keep the foot inside.  Tennis and basketball have similar movements, especially side to side.  

See how much this Adidas Barricade has?

LOOKS AND MATERIALS .This has nothing to do with performance but I think these are beautiful shoes.  It does remind me of The Way of Wade and  Jordan Trunner but Adidas took a fresh take on these shoes overall.





  The graffiti pattern on the sole and the snakeskin really give the shoe a unique and aggressive look. The materials are very nice as a they used a mix of nubuck synthetic as well as snakeskin in these unlike Nikes super stiff 1st gen Hyperfuse they used on the Kyrie I . With the quality materials you feel like you’re getting much more expensive shoe and feel good look good play  good right ?  PRICE

At $105 this is a very inexpensive sig shoe for a spectacular rising star player but from a performance standpoint, I’d gladly spend $4 more to get the Clutchfit Low for better … Well everything. I’d take these over the Kyrie I though only bc I like the flexibility, materials and player a lot more. (Nike really half assed the Kyrie I) CONCLUSION

Adidas has finally figured out that sig shoes are what pushes the envelope of design and gives a shoe spirit and personality . I do not know what took them so long to figure this out ; Maybe they didn’t want to pay extra endorsement money for a low ROI but it is nice that they gave Wall and Lillard their own shoes. The Lillard 1.0 certainly has some personality and swagger but needs to be tweaked to be considered a great performer especially in the fit department. I really tried to like playing in these too but they just weren’t right for me. I’m sure Dame loves his shoe and it fits him great but there is only one Dame Lillard so I hope Adidas makes a sig that we can all love to play in.