UNDER ARMOUR CURRY 4 REVIEW – Most Advanced Guard Shoe?!
No doubt about it, the brand new UA Curry 4’s are one of the freshest looking hoop sneakers to come in 2017. Love it or hate it, but it seems like the main brands are going towards that futuristic theme on their new models and the Curry 4’s aren’t any exception as well. Personally, I dig that slick, modern look. How about you guys? Let me know in the comment section!
Anyway, even the freshest look means anything if a shoe doesn’t perform well. So without further ado, let’s see if the Curry 4’s are so excited from a performance perspective too.
MAIN SPECS
WEIGHT: 314 g. / 11.06 oz
TECH: PROPRIETARY FOAM, SPEED PLATE
TYPE: MID-TOP
COLORWAYS: 3+
FIT: TRUE TO SIZE
RETAIL PRICE: $130
BD RATING: 8.7/10
BEST PLACE TO BUY: FINISH LINE
PERFORMANCE
MATERIALS
A WHOLE NEW DEAL
So Under Armour is throwing away that outdated mesh and instead of it, we do receive a knitted upper to keep up with the rest of the sneaker world and obviously to improve things up more than ever before. Let’s face it, Curry is too good to rock some cheap ass, outdated sneakers, right?
That being said, the Curry 4 features a knit internal sleeve that goes all the way down to your tiptoes, as the synthetic leather overlay on the lower section of the upper covers that knitted sleeve to make setup fairly more supportive & structured in certain areas. So basically, this is a sock within the leather cage.
Personally, I do prefer this setup over the fully knitted ones (like on the KD 10) since this one is capable to support my foot to the point where I do feel pretty much secured in all areas, without giving away too much of that knit goodness.
CUSHION
THE MIDSOLE GOES IKOGNITO
We didn’t get any info about what the hell is hiding in the midsole but it doesn’t change the actual fact that this “unknown” setup is lacking cushion big time, I’m not going to lie. And switching from the LeBron 15’s to these doesn’t make any bit easier. It’s like night and day. But I’m not mad about it because from the day one, the Curry line is strictly oriented towards light guards as Curry himself – striking responsiveness, complete court feel & zero delay making any moves on the hardwood. That’s exactly what this tooling is all about.
Now, this isn’t my kind of tooling being a bigger and much stronger player and if you’re something like me, I really recommend you skipping these. Instead, check this one out. But when it comes to a player who has similar build and playing style, the curry 4’s setup is probably one of the most excited ones, something very similar to REACT tooling.
That ultra wide base & super responsive midsole duo creates something that every single guard will appreciate to have on their feet – spot on feet planting following a quick move to make sure you’re stable before rising for that three or layup.
TRACTION
SOMETHING DIFFERENT
The spiral traction pattern took a well-served place from the herring bone pattern and as this might sound a bit scary since the herringbone is always the way to go and other different stuff can easily cause some performance issues. Surprisingly, UA got away with this one pretty successfully.
Now, I’m dealing with the solid rubber outsole and there’s a translucent option as well, which isn’t that good in terms of performance, mainly for its sensitivity to dust. So if you do care keeping your ass safe and I bet you do, you should be highly considered picking the solid rubber option which did a pretty darn job keeping me covered in all kinds of situations.
Dust issue is pretty much unnoticeable or in other cases even non-existing, as there’s no need to put extra wipe playing ball. Just wipe them whatever you think it’s time and you’ll be good to go. That being the case, the outsole is something that you can fully rely on due to very steady performance on any kind of surfaces, including indoor ones as well.
FIT
HUGE LEAP FORWARD
Now this is excited. Thanks for that well-crafted knit inner sleeve, the 4’s take an enormously huge leap forward in terms of how well they fit. Hands down, one of the most comfortable hoop sneakers released this year. Yeah… They’re that good.
The only down side is that you’re not getting that awesome fit straight out of box, as you need to put a few quick runs in them for the materials to break in. But it’s not a big deal.
So the higher portion of the upper is just a knitted sock, that’s why you’re getting one of the purest knit experiences there- zero restrictions whatsoever, crazy lightweight & free motion feel and on top of that, the air flow is just on point, right where you need it the most.
Of course, a knitted upper itself doesn’t gonna cut it, so that’s where the leather backup comes in to give upper more structure and overall better containment. So overall, the 4’s are offering you that nice blend between finest one-to-one sock like fit and solid containment to feel more or less secure on the court.
And as far as the actual fit goes, just go whatever your true size is, as the knitted sleeve will adapt to your foot shape in pretty much no time.
SUPPORT
STRICTLY FOR SHOOTERS
Going from really excited things to less excited ones, as you probably already guested, the support on the Curry 4’s isn’t that good FOR ANYONE EXEPT SHOOTERS LIKE CURRY HIMSELF. So me being a powerhouse player who prefers playing strong & aggressive ball with ton of contact, this delicate support setup wasn’t able to offer enough lockdown for me to feel completely supported. And that problem alone was something that forced me to think how to not get injured, rather than completely concentrating to my game. And that’s a pretty huge turnoff for me.
But as I mentioned before, if you’re that type of player who lives by the three point line, adding a few floaters there or here and keeps his ass away from the paint, then this setup is gonna be completely fine for you.
That being said, the main lockdown comes from a proper fit, so be sure picking up the right size for yourself as it could get pretty ugly if you don’t do that. And alongside of it, the main support tech station is located in the midfoot portion, where you do get a fairly wide base with embedded carbon fiber Speed plate to handle explosive movements, while an extended midfoot’s rubber works in tandem with the stabilizer plate to make sure your foot sits right on the footbed upon lateral movements.
OVERALL
So despite them lacking in the cushion department and somewhat in the support area as well, I really did enjoy spending my time in the UA Curry 4’s. This is yet another SUPER successful addition to the Curry’s line as Under
Armour keeps that production stability on a highest level possible. And I had to admit, these bad boys are the most advanced guard orientated hoop sneakers in the history. Yeah. I said that.
Outstanding responsiveness & mobility is the key reasons why the Curry 4 is capable to do all the things on court. And while these bad boys may not be a perfect fit for those explosive powerhouse players who appreciate having a bouncy ride and beefier support. Guards should be extremely happy because we got a winner here.
GRAB A PAIR NOW ON FINISH LINE
Hope you enjoyed my Performance Review on the UNDER ARMOUR CURRY 4. Will you be picking them up? Let me know!
If you have any questions don’t hesitate to comment down below!
Will the outsole last long outdoors
The solid rubber option should hold up pretty well. It really depends on how often you gonna use them outdoors but in general, you should be good for at least one season.
How long is one season?
4 times a week 3 hours?
In your case they should hold up 9 months or so if playing on asphalt. But if the court you’re playing on has that tennis like, rubbery court then expect more serving time from them (up to 15 months probably).
Are you gonna do a top 5 or 10 for 2017?
Of course, I’m working on it so expect a top 10 in the following week!
What would you recommend for a shooting guard, PG 1 or Curry 4? I prefer a more supportive upper than a knit one. Also I like the PG 1’s strap cuz it looks like it is better for lockdown. The whole thing with the Curry 4’s cushion is really weird but i think the traction is a little bit better. I prefer low tops over mid. i already have 2 pairs of PG1s and was planning to get another pair or get the curry 4s. I wanted to try someting new and these looked like a decent option
thanks
If I were you, I would try something else this time. And the Curry 4 low is what I would go for. They might not have that plushy cushion setup with a ton of impact protection, either the PG1. So the cushion setup should be very familiar for you. Now talking about support, the 4’s do not have that beastly upper containment as the pg1’s do. But the whole lockdown & containment located in the midsole and pretty damn wide base, making them supper stable & supportive in any type of situation. So no need to be worried about it.