Nike KD 11 Performance Review

Find out now the Nike KD 11 holds up on court in this performance review.

Nike KD 11 Performance Review
Image via Nike
Nike KD 11 Performance Review

Life in the public eye got off to an interesting start for the KD11 when Nike Senior Director of Global Communications Heidi Burgett tweeted, then later deleted, images of the shoe in mid-May. Like we’ve often seen with the Nike spokesperson, she showcased the sneaker on her personal account first, but rather than being followed up by official communications shortly thereafter, it didn’t hit Nike’s news site until nearly a month later

Durant had been expected to debut the shoe himself during the 2018 NBA Finals, but instead opted to stick with the KD 10—the same model he wore en route to his first NBA title the year prior. Since Durant hasn’t argued this particular decision on social media, we can only speculate at this point as to his reasoning, but regardless of his motivations, it added to the rather unceremonious unveiling of the new model.

Despite the rocky debut, Durant will presumably be wearing the 11 for the upcoming 2018-19 NBA season, and it’s hard to imagine a scenario in which the Warriors aren’t hoisting the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy over their heads next June. So its introduction could be long forgotten about by then, especially if the model performs on court. 

But does it? 

Hover over the dots for a full performance breakdown to find out.

Nike KD 11 - Fit

Nike KD 11 - Ankle Support

Nike KD 11 - Cushioning

Nike KD 11 - Traction

The Nike KD 11 offers a premium cushioning experience, but is heavy, clunky, and lacks the necessary lockdown to recommend as an on-court shoe. It fits true to size as well, so dropping down a half-size to address fit issues would likely present additional problems. It would probably make a comfortable casual sneaker, but just make sure to wear with long socks, because the heel’s pull tab is rough on the Achilles.  

“Disappointing” would be a good word to describe the sneaker, but that implies it failed to fulfill positive expectations. Following the fantastic early days of the line when KD’s signature models represented some of the best performance values in sneaker history, there’ve been more misses than hits. Taking that into account, and adding in the typical drawbacks of sock basketball sneakers, the result was unfortunately not a surprise. 

What is disappointing though is that Durant is at the peak of his career, the back-to-back NBA Finals MVP, has no end in sight to his team’s success, yet his signature sneaker line just isn’t inspiring, anticipated, or exciting. 

Most long-running signature lines have ups and downs. There were certainly low-points to the Air Jordan line, but it’s been rock solid for almost 10 years when it comes to performance. LeBron’s line has gone through performance ruts as well, but has also delivered in recent years—even despite the 15’s sock-like build. And now Paul George’s line occupies the space once held by Durant as the most affordable from Nike, yet one of the best on-court at any price. Here’s to hoping KD’s line takes cues from his early days and gets back to what made the his sneakers so great to start with.