Nike Lebron VII 7 P.S. Post Season Performance Review

 I personally find this to be one of the sexiest Lebron shoes of all time, but it’s probably because it looks like the AJ 1 mid 

 

I do not remember a time, other than the lebron shoes, that I was dying to have a Lebron shoe because of the looks.. and both times they looked similar to the AJ XI and not so Lebronish.

Not much is written on this shoe for some reason so what the hell right?

Pros: traction, Zooooom, containment, interior materials and patent leather are high quality

Cons: early generation Flywire is literally plastic and not really conforming, lots of weird flexing and popping, too much Zoom and rounded outsole causes instability in the heel.

Sizing: half size down

Best for: Zoom lovers

Weight

15.5 oz so pretty average for today’s shoes

Traction 

Pretty much full length herringbone..

I found this traction to be one of the best of all the Lebrons. Not much wiping needed at all even in dusty floors and it bites well. The herringbone doesn’t reach the edges of the outsole but it still works well.

Simplicity pays off doesn’t it Nike?

Cushioning 

Big ol’ Zoom in the heel and a nice fat Zoom bag in the forefoot that feels like Zoom. What the hell happened Nike?

Look how big and wide this Zoom bag is, it basically covers the entire heel

I love the impact protection of the Lebron VII PS especially in the heel. However it is a bit overdone and makes the heel unstable (will cover later). This much Zoom also makes the shoe play “laggy” as the Zoom doesn’t rebound as fast as I’d like as I always felt half a step behind. A little more Phylon or firmness around the outer edges would have made these perfect. But man it feels great.

Fit

In general, I’ve found patent leather shoes run bigger than normal because they can’t really hug the foot due to the stiffness of the leather.  I went down half a size to a 10.5 and these fit me perfectly length wise and width wise. There is no heel slip either however there is a bit of deadspace along the sides due to the plasticky Flywire and patent leather.  Not a big deal but feels odd after coming off leather uppers.

Despite the locked in heel, I never felt a one to one fit because the plasticky upper couldn’t hug my foot correctly; It felt like a shell of a shoe.

Overall, this fit sounds fine on paper but during play, it’s a little cold and sloppy.

Materials 
Flywire in its infancy was a joke. It was mainly plastic with a few strands of Flywire to make it look fancier. I think my shower curtain could have doubled as Flywire.

If you like breakdancing, you’ll love this upper because it pops like nobody’s business. It doesn’t really go away but you get used to it. Kind of how Nike did away with leather and we just all got used to it.

The patent leather is great although a little thin but it is durable and fairly resistant to wrinkling (this is my second pair of 7 PS) and the lining of the ankle collar looks and feels well made.

Support and Stability

Support comes mainly from the fit and the heel counter and does a decent job but nothing extraordinary.

Midfoot support is nice thanks to a real carbon fiber shank

Stability is good at the forefoot due to the outrigger but stability at the heel is too tippy.

It is contoured at the heel and the  Zoom compresses too much on outward landings.

It’s almost like stepping on the edge of a mattress. I tweaked my ankle in these but nothing serious because I didn’t really like the shoe as a whole so these didn’t get a ton of serious runs in these.

Containment 
Containment is solid as always with Lebrons and the the 7 PS is no different due to the patent leather. It does not stretch at all on hard cuts.

Conclusion 

The Lebron VII PS will be remembered as a new jordans 2021 wannabe but it was actually a decent effort by Nike to incorporate new technologies into the Lebron line.  It could have easily been a beast on court if it had a few tweaks here and there to make it an all around performer like Lebron himself. I’ve thought about selling these many times because I never wear them but they are just so pretty that I can’t get myself to. If Nike could learn to merge beauty and performance together again, the Lebron line could be even bigger than it is already is.