Cheap adidas Basketball Shoes: adidas Light ‘Em Up 2 REVIEW!

I’m so glad I’ve found these (I literally missed them)! These are cheap adidas basketball shoes, called the Light ‘Em Up 2. I tested them and made a review, so you can decide better!

As usual, I’ll talk about the shoe’s tech specs, performance, comfort, materials and decide it it’s worth the price.

THE TECH

BOUNCE – The shoe’s cushion system is adidas’s budget setup. For a “budget” cushion, this is great. I think is really successful in balancing softness, impact protection and stability.

For an $80 shoe, don’t expect anything else. But don’t worry about it, it’s a great shoe!

PERFORMANCE


FIT/COMFORT

I can strongly say the shoe is comfortable, breathable, not annoying. Simple as that, I had no problems, no slipping, pain or anything like that.

The only thing I can say is that they fit pretty damn long. Go half a size down and I don’t even think about it. A very similar fit to the D Lillard 2.0

CUSHION

We got BOUNCE cushion that I loved on most adidas’s kicks, and this one’s no exception. Seriously, it’s great. The heel is soft and bouncy, gives a moderate amount of impact protection. The forefoot is of course firmer, so you’re getting some court feel along with impact protection. Everything’s stable and doesn’t compromise your speed.

TRACTION

Traction is also awesome! One of the great things about the shoe – I literally didn’t wipe at all. They don’t attract dust at all, they grip the floor well, I stop, cut and change directions very effectively. The rubber compounds looks really soft, so play with them outdoors at your own risk.

SUPPORT

Now these aren’t support freaks. The upper is relatively soft and there are no dedicated tech for support/stability. But I can’t really complain since they held me pretty well.

If you’re someone who tends to sprain your ankles very often, or you’re an extremely explosive player, I guess I can’t recommend these. But other than that, I simply didn’t have any problems with support either. No lockdown or containment issues.

MATERIALS

The upper is engineered mesh with textile. You don’t see that stuff too often these days and not ON A $80 SHOE! That’s crazy how much of a steal this is. You will need to break them in for a couple of days, but that’s nothing compared to something like leather.

Comfortable, light and you also get some ventilation. As for outdoors, I don’t think this would last long playing streetball, plus that soft rubber compund.

FINAL VERDICT

So, you’re in the market for some cheap adidas basketball shoes? Look no further. I cannot stress enough how great of deal this is, and much of a surprising one as well.

Comfortable, solid cushion, great traction, no support problems and a nice upper. Just be sure to go half a size down.

PROS

+ Awesome traction, no wiping required
+ A very balanced cushion setup
+ Comfortable and breathable

CONS

 Support is a bit weak for certain playstyles
 Traction is too soft for outdoor play

Alright, that’s it for the review! I seriously recommend this shoe, you won’t regret it, especially if you want to save some cash.