Adidas D Rose 5 Boost Performance Review
Written by schwollo
Boost in a premium hoops shoe ? Yes please!
How’d the D Rose 5 compare to other top tier shoes ?
PROS: traction, support, stability, containment, fit, price
CONS: a little deadspace in the toe box (cured with replacing insole, could use a little more Boost in forefoot if wanted to nitpick
I know I’m late to the party as I’ve read all the reviews ranging from “trash” to “awesome” so wanted to help those who are on the fence and clarify that these are definitely AWESOME especially after you swap the insole. With the Rose 5 prices coming down as the season wears on, you’ll be hard pressed to find a better shoe for under $100. Currently Eastbay has them for $109 plus 15 to 20% off which makes it about $88. Full size runs are still available which means they will be discounted further and most hit outlets for even bigger discounts. Just because a shoe sits on a shelf and hits outlets doesn’t mean it isn’t a great performer, it just means the average consumer isn’t buying them. I’d expect them to hit the outlet for about $79.99 soon with additional discounts like buy 2 get 1 free etc ..anyways onto the review.
Traction
Traction is fantastic on all surfaces which is what I’ve come to expect from the DRose line. The rubber is soft and pliable and does a great job pushing away dirt and gripping the floor.The pattern in the forefoot reminds a lot of the Lebron Zoom Soldier VI which had excellent traction as well. I’d say it is almost as good as the Kobe ix and Clutchfit Drive just a touch less grabby thanks to a wider thicker herringbone pattern but just as consistent. I even played in these over my Clutchfits during a tourney this weekend bc they were just that good.
Fit
Fit in the Rose 5 is great as well except for a little deadspace in the toe box. I had the “Brenda/Ltrain” and that colorway had a but more space than my alternate away colorway due to the materials used. This colorway is a mix of leather and mesh which I believe tightens up the toe box. The inflexibility of the Brenda colorway made it tougher to tighten up the toe box imo thus the extra deadspace. I did not have a problem with the deadspace but I decided to swap out the insole with the Rose 4 and it really cleaned up the fit and eliminated all the dead space. If you compare the insoles, you can see the stock insole is half the thickness of the Rose 4s. The idea was probably to put your foot as close to the Boost as possible and was probably an afterthought when they measured and designed the shoe. Does a few millimeters make a difference in performance ? No it doesn’t, but it does affect how you perceive the fit.
Cushioning
Boost is awesome plain and simple. Bouncy and responsive yet plush and durable. I’ve had these shoes for two months or so and the Boost hasn’t lost any of the bounce. I wore them for a tourney this weekend and I didn’t have the normal aches and pains I usually have after a bunch of games. Adidas calls it full length but it is more like 3/4 length as it seems to end around where the toe and foot meet. It is definitely thinner as you move from heel to toe (and as you can see)
Adidas thinned out the Boost in the forefoot to give more court feel and make the shoe more stable. I wish they put a touch more in the forefoot but these aren’t my sig shoe. Swapping the insoles also beefed up the forefoot cushioning a little. Every time I put these on every other brand’s cushioning feels second rate compared to these.
SUPPORT
Fantastic support plain and simple . I really don’t know anyone would need to wear ankle braces when you have these on. Most of the support comes from the supports seen below which are made of a stiffer plastic compound that breaks in the more you wear the shoe.
Additional support comes from the plastic heel counter and keeps your heel in place. 
Since my foot was already securely in place I didn’t have to worry at all about my foot sliding or moving. The support and stability on these are my favorite feature.
STABILITY
These passed my heel test easily and have a torsion bar to keep the foot from twisting. It really helped stabilize the Boost which was a genius move by Adidas. They were able maintain the Boost feel while providing additional support. I never felt out of balance or felt like the shoe was going to tip even I landed off balance .
CONTAINMENT
Some reviewers said they wished try used PrimeKnit or a woven upper on the Rose 5 but my guess is that Rose’s herky jerky movements would have resulted in a blownout in the shoes upper. Plus Adidas wanted to keep the price under $150 so using a woven upper wouldn’t have allowed that. The containment is wonderful on these thanks to the foam ” rails ” that run along the entire side of both sides of the foot. I believe Adidas calls them FitFrame. These sit up about 4 of 5mm around the foot and keep the foot in place even on the hardest cuts. The thicker upper also keeps the foot from coming out of the footbed which I really love .
PRICE
As mentioned earlier, the Rose 5 Boost has been seeing price cuts and will continue to fall in price as the season wears on. For under $100 you can get a fantastic shoe with excellent lock down , traction, cushioning , fit and containment. I forgot to mention they are durable too . My still look like bew after a few months.
CONCLUSION
I think the Rose 5 got lower than expected reviews due to high expectations and hype. If you break down each component of the shoe , it is an exceptional shoe, especially for the price . Once these start hitting outlets I will be picking up several more pairs as they have crept into my elusive top 5 rotation of all time.
schwollo.com 
Hey you think swithching the insole of the rose 5 with a micro g insole from the clutchfits or currys get rid of the deadspace as well as the rose 4?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Just tried it and yep it does. Insole is about double the thickness of the Rose 5 in the forefoot .
LikeLike
Hey! Would you say true to size or half size up/down? I wear a 12.5
LikeLike
What shoes do you wear a 12.5 ? Wide or narrow feet ? I could fit both but I went 11 bc of my wider feet and that’s my normal size
LikeLike
Oh ok then. I wear 12.5 in everything now, Jordan XX9(I had them in size 12 and 12.5. 12.5 felt HEAVENLY but laces snapped), Lebron Soldier 8, etc. I also have a wide foot. I use to wear size 12 but now 12.5
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’d go 12.5. You’ll be ok w 12 but12.5 would be best
LikeLike
Ok then, Have you started playing in the Jordan Superfly 3 PO yet?
LikeLiked by 1 person
I should have it done tonight !
LikeLike
Played with the Drose 5 a while ago at our local YMCA gym. Pretty much everything you said about it on this review is dead on. I might look for insoles to eliminate some dead space on the forefoot. But other than that it was perfect. Court condition was not the best but the traction didn’t give me any problem. Maybe if i went half a size down the fit would have been perfect but because I’m wearing an ankle support it was ok.
LikeLiked by 1 person
A pic with my D Rose 5 https://instagram.com/p/58wC4hyd9g/?taken-by=jef_duls
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for the excellent review. I was one of those on the fence and due to your review went out and got the Rose 5. I’ve been hooping in the Rose 4 prior to this purchase. I also wish there was a bit more Boost in the forefoot like you said. It would have made for a softer ride. The traction is good but I prefer the traction on the Rose 4. Seems that “normal” herringbone works great e.g. Rose 4, UA Clutchfit and Curry 1 but companies probably their marketing departments like to make it cool looking only to mess it up. These are the only two things I would change.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yep normal herringbone just plain works. Rose 4 def has great traction. Try breaking the 5 in some more maybe they will bite more ?
LikeLike
What is the best insole to switch with these?
LikeLike
Something at least twice as thick. Rose 4 , Clutchfit .. Most any insole is thicker than that one
LikeLike
Hi. I would like to update my post after you suggested I break in my shoes more. Thanks for that suggestion. I also didn’t want to lead your viewers astray. I’ve used them for a couple more weeks and I must say as you suggested the traction bites a lot more. I’ve compared them to the Rose 4 on the same court and I can definitely say the Rose 5 has great traction, even better than the 4. So I would like to correct my original comment above. Some may say my 4’s are worn but actually they are in nearly new condition since I had a hernia and hardly hooped in them last year and this year. After I broke the 5’s in more they definitely started biting more. I’m not sure if that is due to the updated herringbone pattern or the new nubby pattern. The herringbone feels softer and more pliable while the nubby pattern is harder and stiffer. Seems like they give you the best of both worlds.
On another note I got the black scarlet which has a normal toe box so I didn’t experience any extra space up front. Some of the designs do seem to have a bit more room up front. Luckily mine doesn’t since I have narrow feet. Also, I just can’t say enough about the fit, support and containment. That GeoFit they had on the 4 provided great support and they made it even better on the 5 by using a stiffer material. And the way they molded that into the sole of the shoes is genius! I’m so happy with my purchase and thanks again for your great review.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Awesome ! I think the Rose 5 got a bad rap bc of some reviewers exaggerating its faults. I think the rubber is softer on the 5 than the 4 so that helps a lot IMO. Glad they worked out well. Get ready when they go to the outlets for super cheap . That’s what I’m doing haha
LikeLike
I should rephrase that. Reviewers emphasized the negative not the positive . It’s a great shoe overall and does everything well.
LikeLike
how does your rotation look now? is SF4 > this?
LikeLike
* for the same price sf4 or rose 5
LikeLike
How’s the court feel with the replaced insoles and tongue padding?
LikeLike
It’s a little higher but court feel is still very good and low to the ground
LikeLike
Just placed the insoles from my old crazylights and now they feel so much better
LikeLike
Yep !
LikeLike
Can someone please tell me how many pairs of laces are included in the packaging? Is it just one or two?
LikeLike
One pair at least with all of mine
LikeLike
None of them had two pairs of laces, right?
LikeLike
Right. Mine came with only 1 pair what was already laced on the shoes.
LikeLike
Correct
LikeLike
Still loving the shoe by the way although I’m eager to try the Rose 6.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m on the edge of bying the rose5’s (alternate away cw) at adidas webshop. I have still some questions:
-on the size chart of adidas my feed are 26,2 cm with socks does i need to go tts with a 9 (26,3 cm) then?
-i often had issues with eyelids tearing (especially with flat laces) are the eyelids IYO durable enough so it wil not tear?
-and lastly has the good ventilation because i sweat a lot?
After all have a great day
LikeLike
Honestly I never look at the CM sizing chart so I can’t say . What do you wear in other shoes ?
Eyelets won’t tear . Built well
Ventilation is average not really a lot of air flow going on . Hope that helps !
LikeLike
I’m most of the time between 8,5 and a 9. I got a 8,5 in super fly 2 but that was a tiny bit to short but since there wasnt a 9 in the store anymore i still bought them (after a couple of plays they loosened just enough to be wearable). Before that i bought standard bbal shoes even AND1’s and in those i had a size 9 (before those my feed were still growing). I still got the insoles of those AND1, they were nicely soft and thick, probably gonna use them if possible deadspace is gonna bother me in the roses.
LikeLike
Id go with the size 9 then let me know how it goes !
LikeLike
I just received them, and put my feed in. The sizing is good I got that finger width over at the toes, so tts will do it most of the time. I could imagine why people don’t like the fit because of the little dead space. But I actually liked that feeling, you feel more free on your feed but still know that you’re locked in, the fit with a thicker insole is more snug and is stil good for me. I’m gonna play in them friday with the standard insole, maybe playing in them will put me back to a thicker insole but I wil see how it feels. From just step in comfort the boost will NOT give you a wow feeling. I think it will be a cushion that gets better while playing, and is maybe not that good in the forefoot like unocked zoom. But it will probably be a cushion that gives you a good feeling after you play (read: you will stil have good knees). I’m just setting my expectations a little lower so I can be very surprised when it does feel super good. The last thing that noticed me is that you can feel the harder parts (fit frame) when putting them the first time on, but that will probably break in. I can’t wait playing in them.
LikeLike
Yea I like a little free space as well. Cramped toes are no good they need to spread when you land.
A little break in time will help with the fit frame. It’s only foam so you can work it with your hands to break in as well. Let me know how it goes
LikeLike
Sorry for the later answer, first couple of trainings weren’t that great actually so i waited to answer. On our home court normally every adidas shoe is terrible with a little dust (traction stand point). At first they were slippy most of the time, but after 2-3 weeks they became better (saw already some wear) and actually an adidas shoe that works on our home court WOW. Didn’t played away games yet with these so only one floor type opinion. I played with a thicker insole, but actually that fit wasn’t good for me. I went back with the standard thin insole, one tip is to tighten the midfood laces after 10 minutes, really helps the little forefoot slippage due to the dead space (and wear good socks also). The biggest wow thing about this shoe is the ankle collar, you don’t even need to tighten the laces much to have the best ankle containment ever. The cushioning was ok, never had issues with it. The only issue i had was with my foot arch getting painfull after a 3 hours hard training, probably because my feet weren’t used to the x-bar. After all I’m glad I buyed them because they’re getting better every time I put them on.
one strange thing I have with al my shoes is that the place where tongue and ankle collar meed, I always have pain for at least 1-2 months but eventually that goes away, really weard
LikeLiked by 1 person
Glad they worked out for you !
LikeLike
Schwollo, I wrote a comment previously and it didnt stick. Im hoping that you can reads this and respond.
Long story short, i’m in my mid 30s, coming off a fractured ankle while wearing Kobe Mentality Lows. I will never do a low shoe again. I tried a wide variety of braces but with high arches, none will fit my shoes. I just cant get it to work out.
So, i’m looking for shoes with good ankle support, cushion, and traction for indoors and out. I’ve narrowed things down to the D.Rose 5 and 6, the Lebron Soldier 9, and someone else suggested the Jordan 28. Now. Ive had the D.Rose 6’s but returned them because the straps didnt seem to be functional and touched eachother at times when my legs were close together. Im willing to give them a try but a bit worried.
In the end, with no budget in mind, what is the best basketball shoe for me?
LikeLike
I think I replied under user Jz comments? I actually suggested all of those except the xx8 bc they will most
Likely pop and they sit a little higher than I like. Feel great though. I also suggested the kd8 even though it’s a low. Protective yet great cushion traction and fit. Soldier vi is better then the IX imo if you can find on eBay. Let me know if you see my other reply if not I’ll re reply
LikeLike
I have really bad ankles going all the way back to grade school so ankle support in a shoe is important to me. I have always owned Nike shoes until a couple of years ago when I finally tried another brand Adidas. I have owned the Rose 4, 4.5 and 5. I can’t say enough about the Rose 5. I’ve come down hard on my ankles thinking that I’ve just suffered a serious ankle sprain only to get up and continue playing! There’s a little triangle piece on the side of the shoe that almost looks like a decorative piece but that really prevents your ankles from turning. Really the whole shoe is designed with lockdown and ankle support in mind as Schwollo described in his review. Awesome ankle support on the Rose 5.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Dale, thanks for confirming. Words cant describe how happy this discovery makes me. I’ve spent 2 months trying on various shoes and scenarios, and think I found “the one”.
The reason I fractured my ankle in Mentalities was that my foot was ‘twisted’ in the air before I landed. So as soon as it touched the ground it was game over no matter how strong my anks were.
Thanks guys!
Schwollo, you should include a donation link on the website man. I would gladly give $5 🙂
LikeLike
Hahha that’s nice of you but I’m good . Damn that fractured ankle are you back to 100% now? People sleep on the Rose line for no good reason . I think I have picked up three pair for under 60 bucks
LikeLike
You are welcome LLJZ. I hope you like them as much as we do. Also, all the best for a speedy recovery. I think I’m going to check out the Adidas outlet store today to see if there are any more left. I love this shoe! Best shoe I have even owned. Schwollo I’m been thinking about this for a while now on how your readers can help you. I’ll write more in another post.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Haha I appreciate it but I’m good I don’t write this stuff for money or anything . Just for fun really
LikeLike
I see. I’ll pick up a few if it works out.
Yeah I fractured my foot in a few places landing wrong. Which is the downside of completely unrestricted freedom of movement. If your shoved mid-air your feet may dangle before it hits the ground haha. I’m healed 100% and stronger than ever but indoor feel confident wobbling ankles around.
Based on D Rose performance who knows if there will be a 7,8,9. It’s a shame.
On a side note, before considering alternatives I thought of modding the Rose 6 which clips off the ankle strap and uses simple lace all the way up.
LikeLike
Yea I’m thinking of cutting the straps off as well. I think it would allow for a tighter fit around the ankle but haven’t decided yet lol
I think Rose is on a big contract so I think they’ll keep making them. The 7 looks pretty awesome based on what’s online at least. Glad to see you’re back to 100%!
LikeLike
Yep Rose 5 got a bad rap from overly unenthusiastic reviews . I think it’s a good blend of everything even though had s little deadspace in the toe box . Rose 1-4 had too little cushioning for my taste although they were are fun to play in
LikeLike
Good sir, go you know any current shoe that feels like this one? My pair is getting older and I really love this shoes
LikeLike
Get one off eBay lots of dead stock pairs for cheap.
LikeLike
Hi Schwollo, this is an old shoe review I know, but I still love these Rose 5s! Wondering if you have a link to some insoles you’d recommend? I’ve never purchased nor swapped insoles, so its new to me. Please send a link (amazon?) if you can. Also, have you done a sock review? Wondering what you recommend there as well, thanks! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I swapped the insole from my rose 4. Plenty of after market insoles out there that will fit and do a better job than the stock insole. If you love it like it is you don’t need to swap them out.
I did a sock review a few years ago .no sock is really the best just different feels.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/schwollo.com/2015/04/03/got-socks-a-defintive-guide/amp/
LikeLike