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94feet: Zo got banned agian but wanted me to post this review for him.

Review Air Max Elite



Perhaps no team shoe from Nike has been debated as much as the new Team Elite series for the 2006-07 season. In order to have some sort of similarity among team members instead of the recent every man for himself look, the folks in Beaverton decided to use one basic look for their team line, and change the cushioning systems for the needs and preferences of individual players. The result: The Team Elite series, with the Shox Elite, Max Elite, and the controversial Zoom Huarache Elite. (I say controversial because of the popularity of the 2K line that apparently has come to an end with the team elite series)

Being a guy that plays down low, I got the Max version of these shoesI was not planning on making this purchase but the fact that a max based basketball shoe was FINALLY placed on Nike ID, I decided to order a pair.





Picture:

http://members.cox.net/kobesucks/zodogg.JPG


On to the review



Sizing
These shoes run true to size. I wear an 11 in most Nike basketball shoes, and the 11 in the Air Max Elite fit just perfectly.



Fit
The fit of these shoes is pretty normalif you have an extremely narrow foot or an extremely wide foot you probably wont like them. Id say they may lean a slight bit to the wide side, but not much.



Comfort
When I first put these on out of the box I was quite impressed by the comfort. Its been said that the Team Elite series was built on the base of the 2K4. The shoe feels comparable to the 2K4 in terms of comfort. No seams to irritate, and no rubbing that I noticed. I feel that these are much more comfortable than the 2K5 as wellbut I never liked the feel of the 2K5 personally.
Ranking: 10/10


Ankle Support
This is the department that I was a little concerned about. If you are a fan of the full length max air platform, most often you like a locked down ankle feel. These shoes do not provide that. The ankle support isnt bad, but due to the fact that the laces dont go up to the top of the shoe under the Velcro strap, the ankle support is not as good as others. I did notice much more ankle padding and stability than the 2K4 or 2K5, just not as much as other full length max shoes such as the Total Force Max, etc. If you are looking for the top of the line ankle support I suggest the Air Max 360.

What about the B1lly Hoyle method of lacing? you may askI wondered that myself. I suppose if you get the GR versions of these shoes, you could try that. From what I have read, it provides much better support in the 2K5 than the regular lacing.

On the ID version, however, the lateral side (side that faces out) doesnt contain the holes like the lateral side. This is in order to have the ID embroidery on the shoe (See pic below)

Ranking: 6/10



Picture:

http://members.cox.net/kobesucks/eliteside.JPG






Cushioning
The cushioning on these shoes is excellent. They are the first full length max shoes for basketball that I am aware of that use the new seamless air max sole. When I refer to seamless max air, I am referring to the lack of a line across the max sole. When there is a seam in the max sole, the cushioning is much harder and less responsive. The new air sole that is used is softer and provides more of a cushion for hard landings and pounding. I am not sure if the new seamless air uses a different type of air (air vs. gas?) or if the difference is in the way the plastic air sole is constructed, but I notice a difference. The first shoe that I know of to use the seamless max air sole for basketball was the Max Operate, but the Air Max Elite is the first one that incorporates this design in the full length max platform. In the pic below notice the line across the air sole of the total max uptempo on the top. This is the seam Im referring to.

Ranking 10/10



Picture:

http://members.cox.net/kobesucks/seamless.JPG


Weight/Position
Im about 190 and I play the post. These shoes are for a bigger player, or anyone that likes the max air platform. Like the low to the ground feeling? These arent for you.



Overall

I would rank these shoes 7/10.

They are good shoes if you like the max air platform, however they arent the best Max shoes of this season. If you want Max Air shoes, get the Air Max 360 or the 180. If you dont like the color options, or these shoes are your team shoes, than you cant go wrong with the Air Max Elite. Having them on ID is a nice featurebut as far as Max Air basketball offerings, there are better choices out there this year.