Under Armour Curry 8 Performance Review

 It must be the shoes right?

I’ll just get this out of the way: Best traction I’ve ever used. Although I could only get on a semi dusty court it might have well been clean as a whistle because it didn’t matter. If you’re a traction ho like me this might be the shoe for you. Traction is pretty much the whole reason I starting looking at shoes and I think I can stop looking in terms of traction now. However, as fantastic as the traction is the rest of the shoe needs a little work. But damn so so close.

Pros: traction, traction, traction, traction, nice blended cushioning, very comfortable overall

Cons: Upper is too stretchy and does not hold foot and ankle back (bruised toes). A little tippy, ok containment, pricey

Sizing advice: go up at least half a size. I think a full size would have been more comfortable for my toes. Nobody should size down unless you’re a masochist

Best for: smaller guards

Buying advice: $160 come on UA/Curry 8. Wait for sales don’t worry UA already did their fake sell out on first colorway $ 120 is fair, bottom around 75-80

Weight:

Same weight as the Soldier VI

Not really what I consider super light but on par with most lows.

Traction

I don’t have access to a dirty gym right now just a semi dusty gym. If you don’t know the story of Flow, the midsole and outsole are all one piece and made out of the same material. It definitely feels like a quality foam with some spring to it (about time UA) The outsole has different depths and micro teeth so you get some clean contact at all times which I really like it’s as if the Rose 7 and Kobe AD’s had a baby to make this pattern.

I tried really had to capture this defect of sorts. Outside (lateral side) of shoe on the right is is raised . I thought it was part of the design but the other shoe is totally flat . No issues playing in them just typical UA quality control or lack thereof.

This stuff just sticks like crazy. I went around no sliding (by myself of course socially distanced with a mask) for a good 1.5 hrs. I switched to some Harden V4s and had to wipe after ten minutes. Aside from not having to wipe the bite is just bulldog strength. I don’t get floored by traction often but damn. UA PLEASE PUT THIS PATTERN ON EVERY SHOE GOING FORWARD.

*one of my followers on IG said it is not good on dusty floors but I don’t have access right now so

Cushioning

Flow feels very good and is the best blend that UA has put together. Not too hard and not too soft (that’s what she said?). The best description I can think of is a thicker Dame 4 w a little more bounce yet denser feel. I know a lot of people think bounciness equates to energy return but it doesn’t so that’s why say I say bounce adds fun. There is no such thing as energy return just look it up it’s Physics 101.

Like all foam set ups, it needs volume to feel good and these sit a lot higher than something like the Harden V3 or 4 or any Curry for that matter. Most Currys sit around 20-23mm fwiw. Switching shoes out you’ll feel a difference right away but if you’re not switching shoes you’ll get used to the height.

While we all have our preferences, ride height doesn’t really affect anything but it is worth noting.

Overall, If you’re expecting Zoom or Boost you’ll be disappointed but imo it finds a very nice blend and is definitely an upgrade over HOVR and of course UA’s “proprietary foam” on the Curry 4 and 5 aka EVA. I don’t mind a firmer ride but I do like some bounce and feedback so these are right in my wheelhouse.

Fit

I bought both my regular 11 and 11.5 and the 11 had my toes at the end of the shoe. 11.5 fit like a 10.5 so I just swapped out my socks to make it work. If you have to wear thicker socks go up a full size.

Right out of the box there was no heel slip no major dead space no excess movement side to side.

Plenty of contour and padding in the heel

However, as nice as the shoe fit, the materials and design of the shoe allows too much stretch and not enough tensile strength and my foot constantly rammed into the front even doing drills by myself.

There is a reason nobody just took an Ultraboost Primeknit upper on a low.

You can see here that the Kobe V eyelets are still further back than the Curry 8 and higher up. This helps keep my foot and ankle back on stops. Also the material is firm and no stretchy knit. Might be a reason we don’t see knits near the ankle 🤔

The toe box has some fuse reinforcements below the knit so yea no fun for my toes. Overall the fit is good but so is the fit of a pair of socks. The Curry 8 is one of those socks with a sole type of shoes which isn’t my preference. I think If I worr some Zamst I’d be ok but hey it isn’t my shoe.

Material

I admit I’m old school as I come from the age of leather and patent leather and leather and saw the evolution to synthetics to fuse and to knit and mesh. PR might say it s for Mother Nature but we all know it’s about $$. Anyways the knit is nice I guess it’s like very prime knit feeling ? Does anyone ever care about knits anymore ? I’ve noticed almost all hoop shoes have moved to mesmmesh or reinforced mesh or an

Anyhoo, the rest is fake plastic leather ala AJ XI style to help with containment. Word to the wise patent works better than this stuff.

Support and stability

Heel counter isn’t the very big and it’s fairly squishy overall. Lots of plastic on this shoe.

Support is non existent since it’s a sock with a sole and if you’re Steph you got the Zamst on so no need for any extra support since it’s maxed out already. The outsole is very wide overall and had a curious design as well.

Instead of adding an outrigger in has an “inrigger” I guess to help with pushing off the inside of the foot.

The outsole is curved slightly to promote a natural gait but I feel like it gave up some stability in the heel to do so. But since it is extra wide it almost becomes a wash. Very Kyrie esque if you ask me. Compared to my Curry standard the Curry 2, the Curry 2 is easily more stable and supportive especially when it comes to tipping. I guess UA wanted a smoother feeling shoe which I cannot deny they achieved. I’d still like an outrigger though.

Containment

An outrigger probably would help w stability

Not the best not the worst. The rand does a decent job but I could still push out of the shoe since the upper overall is flexible and strength. Thankfully it isn’t JC2 or Melo 12 bad but it could be better. Not an issue overall though.

Conclusion

At $160 Steph and UA think a lot of Steph’s brand. Does he need his own brand ? I mean honestly he already is UA basketball. Lebron doesn’t have his own brand yet neither does KD but I guess UA needed to separate Curry from UA to allow other UA hoopers to shine. (Other as in Embiid might be the right word).

I can buy over two KD12’s almost two KD13’s and almost a pair of Jordans at retail for the Curry 8. $160 isn’t bad but UA isn’t Nike or Jordan so they shouldn’t be pricing it quite that high. The big appeal of Curry and UA in 2014 was getting a sig shoe of a game changer for $120-130 bucks but as his stardom and titles have grown so have the sneaker retail prices. I think $140 is the absolute max UA should charge for a Curry but hey what do I know, I’m just a consumer. Add in the cheap plastic rand and heel counter and I just don’t see a $160 premium shoe other than the Curry name.

*Speaking of which of you don’t follow my Stadium Fits, I had a hell of a time with UA. First there was a 25% off with Apple Pay so I tried it and didn’t get a discount even though there were no restrictions. Chatted with CS for a good thirty minutes so he gave me a code that said it would work since he “couldn’t adjust the price” . Of course I tried the code and it didn’t work on Currys. I also sent back the original pair and haven’t gotten a refund a month later. The overall UA experience has sucked but sadly I expected it. *

Overall the Curry 8 is so very close to being great. I understand it is supposed to feel like a running shoe and it definitely does feel like one but to a fault. I absolutely LOVE the traction and I enjoy the shoe but sadly I want a shoe that does everything well and that’s where the 8 falls short in a few too many categories especially at $160. Once they starting hitting sales at $120 -$80’ish I might grab another pair but I’m in no rush since gyms are basically closed for a few more months.

Overall I’d give these a second team rating, almost a first team but definitely a  status for traction.