King of the Court: Lebron XIII vs Rose 6 vs Curry Two

 I started writing a performance review on the Lebron XIII and frankly I got bored. Dunk and Nightwing really hit it on the head so I decided to do a comparison review between these three great performers. Here are my original reviews for the Rose 6 and Curry Two

Sizing Advice

I bought an 11 in all pairs

Curry Two: True to size, a little shorter in the toe box vs Curry One. Can go up half size if you want more space in the toe box

Rose 6: True to size or half size down depending on preference. Slightly longer in the toe box so I could fit true to size and half size down

Lebron XIII: True to size although it looks longer then normal ( same sizing as XII). I can see some people going down half size but not up.

Weight

1. Curry Two: 14 oz
2. Lebron XIII: 16 oz
3. Rose 6: 17 oz

No surprises here. The Curry Two features Speedform and is sparsely padded, thus the light weight. If you want some extra plush padding go Rose 6 or Lebron XIII for a decent amount.

Traction

1. Curry Two
2. Lebron XIII
3. Rose 6

The Curry Two traction is just plain awesome. No need to wipe, just sticks to the floor. In almost any other year, the Lebron and Rose would probably be tops but the Curry Two traction is just perfect.

I was as surprised by the Jordans 2021 traction as everyone else. I found the previous four (9-12) very average/meh except for the X. I hope that from here on out Nike makes Lebron’s traction work for us average joes that slum it on dusty floors. It worked surprisingly well even on dusty floors thanks to a soft rubber compound. Translucent outsoles aren’t bad like everyone believes.

The Rose 6 traction didn’t surprise me despite its looks because almost every Rose shoe has had excellent traction.. Although the splatter design of the Rose 2 wasn’t that great.

Cushioning

1. Rose 6
2. Lebron XIII
3. Curry Two

The ranking above also coincides with how firm they play with the Rose 6 being the softest.

From heel to toe, the Rose 6 is buttery smooth and pushes back on each step while absorbing all the impact. I love Boost and when it is done right like this, it is amazing.

The Lebron XIII is what I expected the XII to feel like. Big 13mm Zoom at the forefoot and heel really made a difference. Of course there is only one that big in the forefoot but beggars can’t be choosers.

Below: comparison of XII and XIII. I think there is a Zoom Air limit; increase forefoot to 13 mm but take away two Zoom units (top two units aren’t Zoom) to make up for the increase. Oh and shrink the heel’s coverage too.

I could feel the bounce from the get go even if it was only one pod. I didn’t  really enjoy the segmentation of the Hex Zoom. They are spaced further apart this time so they don’t feel as seamless as last year. I do not like the Zoom protrusion either but during a game it isn’t really noticeable unless you’re actually thinking about it. It does wobble a bit at the heel if you’re just standing though. I’m pleased to say the overall clunkiness I felt with the XII is gone though.

The Curry Two set up is full length Charged and feels good overall, much better than the Curry One. This set up is firmer than the Lebron and Rose with less bounce and feedback. I still prefer Micro G but this Charged set up is a great too.

In terms of ride height, the Curry Two easily sits the lowest while the Lebron and Rose sit about the same height.

Fit

1. Curry Two
2. Rose 6 with my mod
3. Lebron XIII
4. Rose 6 stock set up

The Curry Two just fit like a sock for me.  I usually don’t like minimal uppers but the Speedform/synthetic upper just worked for me. Some break in time is needed for the synthetic to loosen up but that’s about it. I’ve read some about some Achilles rubbing but I never had that issue.

The Rose 6 was good from the get go for me. I did make an extra eyelet because I felt lockdown could be better though.

Some people may not feel it’s necessary but that’s why our ankles and feet aren’t all the same size and shape. I found my mod effective and really improved lockdown.

The Lebron XIII fit like a sock as well and it should considering it only has one seam and the tongue is stitched in as well (medial side)

If you break a lace please let me know how you relaced. The laces that go through the Posite are  covered underneath. The Posite piece sort of helps with midfoot lock down but I think it’s really the extra thick Fuse that it is on top of that holds the midfoot down.
It looks a little long on foot but I still had my ideal finger width at the toe box. The extra height of the ankle collar didn’t bother me either but I did manage to loosen the laces with my lower calves due to the high cut of the shoe.

Stability 

1. Curry Two
2. Rose 6
3. Lebron XIII

I decided to separate “Support and Stability” because I think they are two different things and deserve to be ranked separately. Normally I put them together since they are working in tandem. If a shoe is stable, it usually doesn’t need much support. And if a shoe has a lot of support, you hope the shoe is at least decently stable so you don’t need all that help.

I found the Curry Two to be outstanding in terms of overall stability. I had a hard time trying to tip them with my heel test. I also think the firmer cushioning set up and outrigger help the shoe become very stable while not being restrictive.

The Rose 6 is also very stable due to a side flat outsole, X torsion bar  and umm, errr, well, a Stable Frame.

Had the 6 not had all these parts in place, all that Boost would have been too plush and unstable.

The Kyrie 8 is also stable overall thanks to outriggers everywhere and would feel even more stable if the Zoom wasn’t sticking out.

It’s also much wider at the forefoot than the XII

Support 

1. Lebron XIII
2. Rose 6
3. Curry 2

None of these three shoes have extensive support. That higher cut of the Lebron XIII looks like it would help but the cut itself doesn’t do much since it is so flexible. The Hyperposite does add a little stiffness and structure but it isn’t going to save anyone’s ankles either.

The Rose 6 looks supportive as well due to the cage but in reality this straps are there for lacing purpose and aren’t stiff enough or oriented in a way to prevent or limit an ankle injury.
The best support feature in my opinion is the asymmetrical collar
I loved this on the AJ XIV and I love this on the Rose 6 now as well. When you turn you’re able the higher cut will slow down the inversion so hopefully the sprain won’t be as severe.

The Curry Two is ultra stable so no real support system outside of fit and the external heel counter is needed.

All three have midfoot shanks of some sort as well as heel counters to control the heel.
Containment 

1. Curry Two
2. Lebron XIII
3. Rose 6

Changing directions and sudden starts/stops laterally (i.e. Crossovers, defensive slides) is where I feel containment matters most. All three shoes do an excellent job with this so you can’t go wrong with any of these. I felt the Curry Two did a minutely better job than the other two due to the extended midsole rails and less elastic synthetic toe box. The Lebron XIII has extra fuse layers as well as an extended higher midsole to hell keep the foot contained.

You can see how much thicker the fuse is around the forefoot. It has to be 2-3 times thicker than the rest of the upper.

The foot actually sits right at the tip of that peak so that the midsole forms a nice little bucket just like the Rose 5.

Imagine the force a shoe takes with a 260 lb freight train like Lebron. I still think he did not like the XI because of the drop in insole pinching between the upper on cuts and slides (contrary to the foot pain excuse )

The Rose 6 went with a lower midsole bucket than last year but still kept the great containment due to a non stretchy upper.
Price

Before coupon codes

1. Curry Two: $130
2. Rose 6: $140
3. Lebron XIII: $200

After

1. Rose 6: $98 to $112
2. Curry Two: $130 (not allowed yet)
3. Lebron XIII $160

*adidas.com 30% code HOOSIERS was working for me yesterday, 11/5*

If you leave out price out of the equation, you must have a lot of money. Don’t know about you but I try to maximize the bang for my buck, especially on a depreciable item like shoes. Regardless of discounts, the Lebron XIII is easily the most expensive. All performance aspects being fairly equal, I’d go with the cheaper ones options unless you’re a huge LBJ fan or need a swoosh to validate yourself  (I’m not a fan of the XIII’s looks at all)

Conclusion

The big three shoe companies (I guess ? Owning less than 5% isn’t really equal footing) really came out strong this year with their top sig shoes.  As you may have read my earlier reviews, both the Curry Two and Rose 6 made it into my ongoing top 3 rotation because they just do everything well and they also excel in traction and cushioning respectively. Personally, if a shoe doesn’t have great traction, it stands no chance in making my rotation because I hate wasting energy trying to stop and change directions while sliding on dusty floors. The Curry Two traction just sticks on anything and I love it. If traction is what’s most important to you as well,get the Curry Two.

The Rose 6 just feels great thanks to a boost in Boost. I can’t say enough about how good it feels from heel to toe. If you love an exceptional cushioning set up, get the Rose 6.

As for the Lebron XIII, I feel it is an excellent shoe but it doesn’t do anything any better than the Curry Two or Rose 6 and nothing stands out to me other than the Hyperposite Clover and the price tag. I will say it is a far better, more natural feeling shoe than the XII and like Lebron, it does everything well. I’d still take my Soldier VI or Soldier IX over these though. Might have less tech, but they are much cheaper in price and perform better.

I hope this comparison helps in deciding which shoe to go with. Feel free to ask questions as always in the comments section

Thanks for reading !