Finding the basketball shoe with the best traction is not an easy task. There are so many different models to pick from and shoes often perform differently depending on the quality of the court, your playing style and even the rubber compound used on a specific colorway.
Fortunately, the web is full of shoe reviewers that can provide you with different opinions and give you a good overall idea of the performance of a basketball sneaker. To save you the time reading and watching all of these reviews I am continuously checking out all significant shoe releases and read or watch all shoe reviews I can find.
So far I have collected ratings of 113 different basketball shoes and consumed exactly 595 reviews in doing so! New reviews are added all the time to create a basketball shoe database that is complete and always up to date.
The following overview shows the ten basketball shoes with the best traction ranked by the average grade they received for it. Scroll down further to read a more detailed summary of each shoe.
- 9.7 traction rating based on 6 expert reviews
- Top-notch traction and well-balanced Micro-G cushioning
- Perfect for quick point guards who want to be able to stop on a dime
- 9.4 traction rating based on 4 expert reviews
- The Lebron Soldier 13 provides awesome traction and no real weaknesses.
- A great all-around performer that works very well for heavier players.
- 9.4 traction rating based on 4 expert reviews
- The first Kobe model with the FastFit lacing system
- Great shoe for quick, low-to-the-ground players who are into futuristic looks
- 9.3 traction rating based on 7 expert reviews
- The lightest Air Jordan ever is a great all-around performance basketball shoe
- A great option if you are looking for a light & stylish shoe with no real weaknesses
- 9.3 traction rating based on 4 expert reviews
- A minimal and very responsive low-top sneaker with great traction.
- Works best for quick guards who value court feel over impact protection.
- 9.2 traction rating based on 5 expert reviews
- Great bang-for-your-buck model from the Kyrie signature line
- Works best for narrow-footers looking for a good allrounder with responsive cushioning
- 9.1 traction rating based on 6 expert reviews
- Great all-around performer at a very fair price
- Versatile shoe that works for all positions
- 9.1 traction rating based on 8 expert reviews
- Provides balanced cushioning, traction that works on all surfaces, and premium BattleKnit upper
- Especially recommended for explosive and powerful wing players.
- 9.0 traction rating based on 6 expert reviews
- A solid performer that started the low-top trend in basketball shoes
- A very versatile shoe that will be most appreciated by players who had the OG Kobe 4
- 9.0 traction rating based on 7 expert reviews
- Great overall-performer with awesome full-length Zoom cushioning
- A well-balanced shoe that works for a wide array of basketball players
Best Traction Basketball Shoes:
The Top 10
1. Under Armour Anatomix Spawn Low
- Phenomenal traction
- Well-balanced Micro G cushioning
- Unnecessary dead space in the toe box
2. Nike Lebron Soldier 13
- Awesome traction
- Very supportive
- Cushioning could be more comfortable
3. Nike Kobe AD NXT FastFit
- Amazing Traction
- Easy FastFit lacing system
- Expensive retail price
4. Air Jordan 34
- Super bouncy cushioning
- Herringbone traction stops on a dime
- Expensive retail price
5. Under Armour Curry 7
- Traction is great and doesn't pick up dust
- Very supportive low-top
- Materials are a little underwhelming
6. Nike Kyrie Low 2
- Very good traction
- Great materials
- Stiff cushioning
7. Nike PG 3
- Great traction
- Very supportive shoe
- Materials feel cheap in-hand
- Long break-in period
8. Nike Lebron 16
- Premium materials
- Traction works well even on dusty courts
- Expensive retail price
9. Nike Kobe 4 Protro
- Great herringbone traction
- No full-length Zoom
10. Nike KD 12
- Full-length Zoom cushioning
- Much more stable than previous KD models
- Materials could feel more premium
Frequently asked questions about traction:
How can I improve the traction of my basketball shoes?
There is no magic formula that makes old basketball shoes stick to the floor like glue, but there are a few things you can do to improve traction:
Wipe – a lot!
This one is self-explanatory. The grooves of the traction pattern become more and more shallow with time, which means you will need to wipe a lot more to get the dust off the surface of the rubber.
Get a courtside traction mat
A courtside traction mat is usually placed close to the bench and you just step on it when you get subbed in or if you want to refresh your grip during timeouts.
A lot of basketball teams use these traction mats to get an advantage over their opponents, especially on dusty and slippery courts.
Get a pair of “Court Grabbers”
Now, if you want to improve the grip of your shoes, you just slide the bottom of your shoes across the pad to restore the traction. If your traction is really bad and you need to wipe after every other possession then the Court Grabbers are much more practical because you don’t need a break in play.
Which basketball shoes perform best on dusty courts?
If you are not a professional basketball player who gets to play on pristine, freshly waxed hardowood courts all the time your are probably familiar with basketball courts that could easily be used as skating rinks. No sneaker will grip the floor well if your court is covered with a thick layer of dust. But some sneakers work better than others:
Get solid rubber colorways
While it is not true for every shoe and every brand, in general, translucent colorways seem to attract a lot more dust than solid ones.
Look for a traction pattern with deep and wide grooves
If the grooves of the traction pattern are too narrow and shallow they will be clogged with dust quickly. As soon as this happens you will be sliding like crazy because the rubber of your shoe is no longer able to make contact with the floor.
Another problem of narrow grooves: Wiping dust becomes so much harder!
What’s the best traction pattern for basketball shoes?
There are so many different traction patterns – it’s impossible to keep track. But there are a few things you can look out for:
The pattern should be multidirectional
A multidirectional pattern has grooves in every direction which allows for grip not only when you accelerate straight ahead, but also when you do lateral moves like crossovers or defensive slides.
A very popular example of a multidirectional pattern is the herringbone traction:
On the other hand, the Lebron 15 is an example of a shoe that doesn’t provide you with a lot of lateral traction because of the way the traction pattern is set up:
Don’t fall for crazy storytelling
Sometimes signature sneakers go crazy with elaborate little details and storytelling that look nice but actually hurt the performance. Don’t fall for flashy design if you want a basketball sneaker that performs well on the court – functionality should always come first!
I myself have lebron 13 .. really like them.. I think i need an upgrade though haha! Nice review Andy