What makes a basketball shoe the right one? WNBA players share their thoughts

Superstars like Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson and New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu are wearing their own signature shoes, while Phoenix Mercury guard Monique Akoa Makani prioritizes style.

“It has to fit with the jersey, first of all,” Akoa Makani said.

Los Angeles Sparks guard Julie Vanloo also cited appearance as the main reason she chooses what shoe she goes with. Vanloo, like Akoa Makani, said the uniform she’s wearing in a game is a big reason why she chooses what shoe she wears. However, she said she is not afraid to wear “fancy shoes” because her style of play is “expressive.”

For Wilson, how the shoe felt was her main goal when designing her signature shoe, the Nike A’One.

“Comfort was huge for me because I wanted my feet to be the last thing I have to worry about,” Wilson said.

Mercury center Natasha Mack is big on comfort as well.

“When I’m hooping, I look for comfortability,” Mack said. “So I have to be comfortable. I have to be able to jump, turn and feel like it’s not weighing me down because my job is to get rebounds so I can’t be weighed down.”

Dallas Wings star Paige Bueckers talked about how she looks for a combination of appearance and feel when looking for basketball shoes, and the “grip,” specifically, is also just as important to her.

Golden State Valkyries forward Monique Billings has made it clear that she is not a sneakerhead—she’d even play in high heels if she could—but that for her, it’s all about practically when choosing what she wears on the court.

“I can’t even tell you what these are,” Billings said. “These are the efficient, get it done shoes.”

Why the rise of low tops?

The evolution of the basketball shoe has moved away from high tops to the low or mid top design for many shoes. Both Ionescu and Wilson’s signature shoes are low tops, too.

“I just think the game’s evolved,” Ionescu said. “Obviously, I think there’s a lot of research from high top to low top and I don’t think they found much. So I would say I think people obviously probably like the look, the esthetic, the feel of the shoe.”

Vanloo suggested low tops are in because “it makes you feel quicker” in the modern form of basketball, which she described as “more athletic” and “more versatile.”

Free agent guard Grace Berger, who has always worn low tops, said she feels like she can even “move better” in them. Still, some players remain staunch proponents of high tops.

For example, Seattle Storm star Nneka Ogwumike has talked about how she does not like low tops and had the shoe she currently wears, which does not come in a high top, customized to be one. For Billings, she wears high tops because she wants to “protect” her ankles.

WNBA players give their all-time favorite shoes

So, what are players favorite shoe of all-time? When asked about it, their responses varied.

Ionescu went with her own shoe as her favorite: “I don’t think I could go with anyone else’s so definitely mine,” she said.

Akoa-Makani said her all-time favorite shoe is the Nike Kobe 6. “That shoe was just amazing,” she aid.

Dallas Wings veteran Myisha Hines-Allen said a version of Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s Nike shoes and Damian Lillard‘s Adidas shoes that she wore in college at Louisville are two of her favorites.

Bueckers and her teammate, fellow rookie JJ Quinerly, are fans of Kyrie Irving‘s signature shoes when he was with Nike. “I would say the Nike Kyrie’s,” Bueckers said. “All the numbers.”

The Next’s Steve Silverman and Bella Munson contributed reporting for this story.