Shox VC III

Jordan VI Infared

Jordan 2010 Stealth

Jordan IX Powder

Notice the slope from front to back as well as how high the foot sits off the ground. How much different is this from wearing high heels? This is a shoe that may be good for big men in the paint but not for quick guards that the Flight Series is suppose to target...

Nike Shox VC III black and silver

... and last time we checked, it does say FLIGHT on the shoe (as well as on the pull tab at the rear of the shoe).

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Tester: Mike

Position: Point Guard.

Style of Play: Slasher; drive to the hoop and dish; side to side movements and crossovers.

Favorite shoe: Ultraflight or 2K3.

Latest Shoes reviewed: Ultraflight; Flight 2K3; Turbine; Jet Flight; Shox VC I; TMAC I, II, III; Jumpman Team Flow, Jordan XIV...

Overview: Just coming off recent testing like the Ultraflight, Flight 2K3, TMAC 3, I must admit I had extremely high expectation for the VC III. It was my first try at Nike's full length Shox cushioning technology (I had missed a chance for the VC II). My earlier trial with the Shox VC I had both rear and forefoot Shox columns, but the VC III is on an entirely different level. I've been used to wearing quite a few pair of low-profile Zoom Air shoes in the past few years and switching to the nearly 8 rows of Nike Shox columns was a pretty big adjustment. My first wear in the VC 3 was quite awkward. The Shox columns were not as soft and forgiving as I had hoped. The columns at the heel area were stiff and bulky. I was too eager to try on these shoes and it could have used a little break in time.

Within a week, the initial discomfort disappeared and the shoes started to blossom in terms of comfort and cushioning. When in motion, the cushioning from front to back flows through the length of the shoe underneath the mid-foot plate. The full impact protection provided by the shoe is also very impressive. When landing from a full jump, the Shox system mitigates any impact discomforts that may result and returns the energy into the very next step. This is essentially the goal of any good cushioning system, but in the VC 3's case, it is almost TOO good. As a point guard, I tend to seek court feel in my shoes. That is something I never got from the VC 3. Technology aside, how the shoes perform on the court is really determined by how the feet communicate with the hardwood. As ludicrous it may seem, the full-length Shox was almost excessive for me. It provided a layer of abstractness that I could not get a handle on. While the toe to heel movement is great when running up and down the court, the side to side movement left much to be desired. This problem is further exposed by the extremely high upper that restricts my quick cutting movements.

Sitting a mile off the court also didn't help. Perhaps I'm obsessed with low profile Zoom Air cushioning, but for my game, the Shox-based VC 3 is like a plush ride SUV trying to make a run around a race track with tight corners. The shoes didn't give me the feedback I needed to tell me exactly what is going on at all times. It is almost like an eerie feeling of over-confidence and arrogance. In hindsight, I realized that it created a dangerous combination that led to my downfall - literally. Essentially, due to the extreme plush and luxury feeling of the VC3, you tend to forget you are sitting higher off the ground than ever before. You are pushing the shoe to the limit further than you realize due to the lack of court feel. Finally, you feel like the external roll wedge and the high upper can save you even if you do get in trouble. And that's where my short-term testing ended prematurely the hard way. Upon an awkward landing, the VC3's sole slipped and rolled towards the external part of the shoe. What a perfect time to find out Nike has decided to do away with the monkey paw anti-inversion system? The heavily padded area at the upper held on for dear life but this only allowed the sprain to occur higher up on the foot. The result was a high ankle sprain that'll put me out of commission somewhere in between 6 to 8 weeks. Along with my swelled up black and blue ankle went my once high hopes of testing the upcoming Air Jordan XIX. Talk about adding insult to injury.

To be fair, I did not give a low score when it comes to safety of the shoe. However, it is the whole misleading concept that the shoe has great support that should get an asterisk for caution. To say that the VC 3 has great ankle support and safety is a gross overstatement. It is the same reasoning behind the general public thinking SUV's are much safer to drive around than smaller cars. If you get into a crash, that massive hunk of metal is going to be the reason you'll live. It is this kind of false assumption that'll get the guards who like to slash into trouble with the VC3. Perhaps players will other style of game will have a completely different view from me, but I would not recommend this shoe to point guards such as myself.