Photo by Albi Quito (2020)
It’s adidas Dame Time ⌚️! I recently laced up the new Damian LILLARD shoe for an up-close look and performance test 📝. Just in time for the holidays and your Christmas wishlist, right? So let’s dive right into this and check out what adidas has in store for us with the new Dame 7 💪.
Design
I hope you are ready for Christmas, because it won’t get any more festive than these 😉. Let’s talk about the colorway first. The version I have in hand is the Dame 7 “Christmas”. Personally, I don’t mind this color at all and it actually quite grew on me. What you may not see in the pictures though, is how glittery the shoe is. So if you are not a fan of that, just pick a different color. However, I can assure you, that my daughter definitely digged that Frozen ❄️ finish. So whether you are more of an Anna or an Elsa, these will have you covered 😄. Let’s get a little bit more into the technical design now. We see Dame with yet another low top silhouette, which I honestly like better on foot than in product pictures. They just seem to look a bit bulky in them. But this might just be personal taste. What kind of surprised me, is that they are heavier than I would have imagined. They weigh in at 426 g, which still makes them a middleweight in general, but puts them above most of the lows that I have recently tested.
Materials
Let’s keep this in perspective, the Dame 7 is a well priced option for a signature shoe. You won’t see many other shoes of actual NBA stars, that have this kind of pricing. So yes, this is also reflected in the selection of the materials. But don’t get me wrong. I am not saying they used cheap materials on these. They are just certainly not the most premium ones. No leather, suede or any other exciting breakthrough innovations. What we have here, is pretty much what you would always expect to work: mesh. And on this one, we actually have quite good mesh, which is in my opinion also an upgraded version over what they used on the Dame 6. Performance wise, there won’t be any issues.
Traction
Traction was solid. Nothing too exciting but rather something that gets the job done. At times, I would experience some really good bite and at other times, these would just flat out perform without any compromises. Yes, wiping will be required at times but apart from that, these felt pretty reliable. Taking these on the blacktop, should also not be an issue as the outsole looks and feels quite durable.
Cushion
adidas went with full-length Lightstrike on these and that was definitely not a mistake. The whole setup feels great and comfortable. However, what I really liked is how balanced the setup feels. While you have really good impact protection in the rear, you have a little less in the forefoot, but will get solid court feel and responsiveness. All in all, nice execution.
Fit
Overall, the fit was nice. No unnecessary dead space or anything else that would cause your foot to slide out of position. I also really liked the padding around the achilles area. That just upgraded my personal comfortability in these, I would say. However, I needed to give it a little bit of time to break in until it felt good all around. Regarding sizing, this seems once again to be a shoe on which opinions tend to differ. Some say these run true to size and some say these run half a size big. For me personally, true to size was the way to go.
Support
Once the shoe breaks in and wraps around your foot nicely and comfortably, containment won’t be an issue and you will feel locked in. Further, the Dame 7 is rather wide, which will cover you in terms of lateral stability. For those, who want some kind of ankle restrictions, these may not offer you what you are looking for. Yes, they come up a bit higher than recent lows that I have tested, but these are still lows and won’t really provide feedback around your ankles. Overall though, support was pretty solid.
Bottom Line
Bottom line, this is a solid shoe and very reasonably priced for an NBA player’s signature sneaker. At a price of EUR 110,- the Dame 7 is a very competitive option and there won’t be a lot of other signature lines at this price. But is the name and the price enough to convince you? Well, it is indeed a very solid shoe, that has no serious weaknesses. On top of that, you get pretty good Lightstrike cushioning, which many will appreciate. Pair the solid performance features with the name of one of the game’s biggest stars and you have a fair sneaker option right here. Be so good, they can’t ignore you, right? Don’t sleep on the adidas Dame 7.
Feedback
What’s your thought on the adidas Dame 7? Let me know. Find me on Twitter and Instagram at @ONEtothe2.