Another nice surprise – Asics Gelburst 24
I did not plan to wear and review this piece until recently. A lot of people have been saying this is a very good shoes to play in with, but I have doubts toward the Asics basketball line. Don’t get me wrong on this, Japan made Asics basketball shoes were my dream stuff like 30 some years ago when I was playing college ball in Taiwan. Unless you were sponsored by the brand, you just could not get those shoes that were specially made and shipped straight from Japan. Asics was actually trying hard to push their basketball products into the global scene, and paid big money to sponsor NCAA events and also signed a few NBA players in the early 90s. Detroit Piston guard Isaiah Thomas was contracted with the brand and worn their shoes for a few seasons. I actually bought a pair of his shoes in 94 in the black/white colorway and loved it very much. It was Asics’ attempt to make western designed style kicks but just did not work. When I came back from the States in early 2000s, I had to travel to Tokyo for business and bought a few pairs of Asics basketball shoes, including the early version of the Gelburst model, and worn those in games. My impression back then for those shoes were pretty simple. They were all solid made with a lot of attentions to details and quality, but they were all bottom heavy and lack of proper cushioning. Going back to the present time, after reading and hearing many good things about this Gelburst 24 (G24), I thought I should give it another shot. On top of that, since I have received a few of other replacement insoles that I have ordered, I thought maybe I should do another comparison with the shoes that equips with original insole vs. others.
My plan took another sharp turn since after my first game with the original insole last Saturday, I decided to stick with the original set up for at least the day, simply because I was very impressed with the shoes. I ended up playing with the G24 for four games straight and just loved it. If you don’t feel like reading my long review from herein, this G24 pretty much is a combo from my two beloved kicks, UA Clutchfit Drive and Nike Hyperdunk 2014. It was so good to the point where I am seriously thinking if I want to put replacement insoles in. Anyway, let’s get more into details.
First of all, let me get the only downside of this G24 out of the way first – sizing. Because I vaguely remember Asics basketball shoes were all fit big, so I got a pair of 30cm, which is US size 12.5, with standard fit. Asics also offers wide fit of this pair, but I could not find it in 30cm. It turns out that even with standard fit toe box, this pair still fits wide and long. I guess the perfect fit for me should be 29.5cm. Here comes the good part of the overall design that saved this issue. The mid-section of the G24 is actually on the narrow side and the flat and strong laces also help with the overall fit once I tight it all the way up. For these reasons, my feet were not moving around even with the less than perfect fit. If you are planning to grab a pair, I highly recommend you go try it on first.
Remember I said Asics basketball shoes were all bottom heavy? This G24 does not have this issue at all, and the overall weight of the it is pretty good and balanced. My guess is that over the past 10 years or so, Asics must have readjusted its midsole compound and reduced a lot of weight of it. The new compound now is called “Flytefoam”, it is made of Kevlar fiber and different from a lot of brands often use air infused compounds to form their insoles. Air infused compounds, such as Lunaron, indeed provide very good cushioning but would go dead pretty quick once those air pockets break over time. Other than the weight, the overall ride of this insole is also very good. It is pretty stable when I ran with it. On top of that, when I jumped for boards and defense, it gives me more than proper shock absorption that I expected. Please pay extra attention here, I used the phrase shock absorption, but not cushioning here is because I never felt the bouncy feeling like I had with a lot of the other cushioning systems, such as Zoom Air or Micro G, but I never had issue with the G24, even after the game. Remember I am having issue with my left ankle? With the original insole and set up, I still felt tightness and soreness after the games, but it was not that bad comparing how I felt weeks ago. In addition, my discomfort went away really quick and I had no issue at all the next morning. That basically proves the Flytefoam works, at least for me personally.
The traction is really good as well. Of course, again, I am a big guy in the middle and does not do much cutting at all, but when I moved within the paint area for both defensive and offensive moves, the bites of the outsole were really solid and I never had any issue whatsoever with it.
The outsole mid foot shank also doubles as part of the ventilation system. Asics is really thoughtful and smart on this. They put holes on the insole, the layer of the strobel, and also cuts a few open sections on the midsole, outsole, and the added shanks. To be honest with you, because I only wear my basketball shoes indoor after I arrive at the court, I don’t usually feel if the shoes are too hot due to issues with material and ventilation. However, I am sure the overall design Asics employees would help on cooling down the feet in general. The other thing that I have to mention is that if you take a look at the picture of the strobel, Asics actually taped the treads on top of it. I am sure all the other brands would just let those laying around on top of the strobel since chances are, you probably would never see those anyway. However, what I am trying to say it, paying attention to these little details do make a customer, especially an old guy like myself feeling it is all worth what I have paid for.
Now let’s take a look of the arch side of the midsole/outsole. Asics raised the structure a little bit and it acts like the arch support. This is not a unique design of the shoes but it is hard to make it right, at least for a person with semi-flatfoot like myself. The often seen issue with this design, especially for most of the Asians with wider foot, is that this construction is designed too narrow or too high up and cause discomfort for the players. The recent Air Jordan 35 is a very good example. Whether you like the look or not is a separate issue, but that piece of plastic up in the mid foot section surely is not a friendly thing for most of us.
To sum up, for a pair of shoes that you now can get around NTD 3,000, I doubt you can find a better option. This G24 was made and designed with a lot of attention to details and I really don’t think you can find others in this price range, even with a much higher price tag, to beat it. Even with the original price at around NTD 4,000, I still believe it is a good buy.