Officially presented in New York, the new Nike Adapt BB are the first basketball shoes with FitAdapt technology that can self-lace and adjust foot pressure automatically via a smartphone app. In short, the prediction of Back to the Future comes true, and this time it’s for everyone, or almost everyone. Because it was since March 2016 that Nike was toying with this (crazy) idea of a pair of self-lacing shoes. It started with an experiment – a pair of shoes inserted in a snowboard – then moved on to a timid limited production of the Nike HyperAdapt 1.0, costing 720 euros: goodbye, many said.
Le immagini delle Nike Adapt BB che si allacciano da sole
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by Valerio Mariani
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Now the Beaverton company has decided to step up its game and, most importantly, make the technology more accessible (priced at $350 in the United States) by focusing on a sport, basketball, in which the shoe lacing undergoes various stresses due to the continuous foot twists. Compared to the recent Adidas Copa 19+ recently presented by Paulo Dybala, the difference is substantial. The Nike Adapt BB, in fact, have a closure system, unlike the Adidas ones designed for soccer.
The foot grows half a size during a game
According to Nike researchers’ studies, during a basketball game, the foot can expand by almost half a size, and even at the end of the first half, after 24 minutes of play, a quick check on the lacing is common, among professionals as well as in the worst minor leagues in Caracas and surroundings. The technology of the new Nike Adapt BB combines an automatic lacing system that doesn’t involve traditional laces but small zippers covered by the upper, regulated by a small cable capable of withstanding the tension of a parachute cord, and an app to manage the motor that controls them.
How do Nike Adapt BB work
For the prototype testing, Nike summons promising NBA star Jayson Tatum to its laboratories, who plays for the Boston Celtics, to verify the technology’s promises. The result is a shoe with a minimal, pleasant design without frills, on which the application of the motor and the changing buttons that regulate the closure in the absence of the app do not affect performance and, above all, the overall weight. So, through the two buttons inserted on the outer side of the sole or through the smartphone app, the tension of the shoe collar can be adjusted at any time to achieve the best grip and thus avoid annoying foot slips that could turn into traumas or, conversely, circulatory difficulties. Nike claims to improve foot fit by 40% compared to traditional shoes. Will 350 kg for 30,000 times suffice? Nike’s stress tests have included continuous impacts of 350 kg for 30,000 times, 5,000 flex and twist cycles of the foot, 2,900 lacing cycles, a stress test of 300 liters of water at 60 degrees with 85% humidity. This means that the minor league amateurs mentioned above will find challenges even on non-parquet courts.
The technology features profile storage (training, game, rest, for example) to be set via the app. Additionally, at rest, the mechanism recharges via USB by placing the shoes on a circular base provided in the package. The battery inserted in the shoes has a declared autonomy of a minimum of 10 days but, in any case, ensures a minimum emergency charge to unlock the shoes.
The launch teaser of the new Nike Adapt BB featured, in addition to Tatum, other exponents of the American basketball Nouvelle Vague: Luka Doncic, De’Aaron Fox, Frank Ntilikina, Kyle Kuzma and Jordan Bell, as well as professional WNBA players Breanna Stewart, A’ja Wilson, and Kelsey Mitchell. The Nike Adapt BB will be available for sale in the United States in February at $350, and later worldwide at a price yet to be determined. A transposition of the technology to sneakers and shoes designed for other sports is also planned.