Welcome to my J Wall 2.0 review! If you’re a fan of the shoe or you’re looking to get it for playing basketball, you’ve came to right place. We’ll find out if it’s capable enough.
I’ll talk about the shoe’s tech specs, performance, comfort, materials and decide it it’s worth the price. Let’s start the J Wall 2.0 review now!
THE TECH
adiPrene+ – this the shoe’s cushion, which is a full-length midsole. adiPrene is definitely an old cushion system by adidas, and by all means it’s not perfect, not even close. We’ll talk about it more, but don’t expect anything awesome.
QuickFrame – this is a layer for midfoot support. This is similar to SprintFrame or StableFrame, but I think those technologies do a better job than this one.
NON-MARKING Outsole – yep, you guessed it. It doesn’t leave marks on the floor.
If you still have no idea what all those tech names mean, go HERE.
PERFORMANCE
FIT/COMFORT
I mentioned this shoe as one of the best options for wide footers (yeah, there aren’t many of those), so I repeat myself again by saying that these are good for people with wide/high arch feet.
Very wide-footer friendly construction, it feels really roomy everywhere, putting them on is easy too. Comfort is there as well, there aren’t really any slippage/lockdown issues. Maybe it felt a bit loose from time to time, but once they break in and mold to your foot’s shape, they’re pretty good.
CUSHION
Definitely nothing spectacular since it uses adiPrene+. Right off the bat, it’s not terrible, but it’s far from what adidas offers today (BOOST, BOUNCE). The setup is made for guards who need responsiveness and court feel. There pretty much isn’t any softness/bounce, nor impact protection. Still, the heel is somewhat soft, so at least you won’t break your foot upon each landing.
I guess it’s a decent setup for a casual player who isn’t too explosive or heavy. There’s good responsiveness and court feel, but not really anything else. If you like this setup, try it out.
TRACTION
Again, I can’t say the traction is bad, it does the job, but it gets weird sometimes. adidas is known for using these super dense/compact outsoles that collect dust rapidly. This is no exception. If you plan on playing with these on some old court or outdoors, look somewhere else right know.
They do grip the floor well as long as you wipe them very often and you’re on a reasonably clean INDOOR court. I don’t like that, a player who’s dedicated into the game shouldn’t worry about if he’s gonna slip on his next movement.
SUPPORT
QuickFrame does its job decently like I said and even though you don’t feel restrictive, I didn’t feel too confident.
The movements felt a bit weird and even though I didn’t roll an ankle, I would prefer something like the D Rose 6 supporting my foot. I don’t know, you gotta feel it to believe it and it does depend on your foot’s shape. I didn’t have problems, but I didn’t like it too much.
MATERIALS
The upper is synthetic leather. It is durable and supportive. It doesn’t feel bulky or uncomfortable, so I’ll give it that. Don’t expect good ventilation (that’s not what synthetics do). Movements very pretty good, the upper didn’t restrict or get in the way.
If you like these sturdy uppers, then this is a good example. One note, the shoe’s upper depends on the colorway. There’s this option, then a mesh & synthetic leather one and a Primeknit one. Choose at your own risk.
FINAL VERDICT
So, the shoe is something I expected a lot more. John Wall is an explosive, super fast point guard. And he should have the right shoe for the job.
The are pretty comfortable and good for feet, they have good (but sensitive) traction, a sub-par cushion setup, decent support and a solid material setup.
I don’t know about you, but I would go for something different, honestly. I guess if you’re REALLY a fan of John Wall, at least pick up the Primeknit version, I heard it’s the best one.
PROS
+ Fit is proper and comfortable
+ A durable, trusty upper
CONS
– Cushioning is far from enjoyable
– Traction is good only on fine indoor courts
– Support is flimsy and unstable at times
RECOMMENDED ALTERNATIVE
ADIDAS D ROSE 6 BOOST
The Rose 6 is the perfect example of a mid top for an explosive/fast guard.
It has full-length BOOST, StableFrame, comes in many different upper choices and has great all-around performance.
Head to the review and check if it’s good for you.
Alright, that’s it for the review! I hope you found it helpful and I hope I didn’t scare you too much :D.