Adidas Harden Vol. 5

Released 1/2021, Low Top, James Harden, 
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6.9
EXPERT RATING
4 reviews
6.7
USER RATING
29 ratings
James Harden's 5th signature shoe is a disappointing basketball shoe

Best Suitable For:

Only recommended for players who hoop outdoors and need a responsive shoe.

Price Comparison:

Available at 3 shops | Official Retail Price: $129.99
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Category Performance Ratings:

Expert Ratings (4)
User Ratings (29)
Traction
6.8
Cushion
6.8
Materials
6.8
Support
7.5
Fit
7.3
Outdoor
100%

Weight & Sizing:

Weight:
light
heavy
Sizing:
small
large
Width:
narrow
wide

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Expert Rating6.98.3(1.4)8.0(1.1)8.1(1.2)8.2(1.3)7.9(1.0)
User Rating6.78.7(2.0)8.4(1.7)8.1(1.4)8.1(1.4)8.5(1.8)
Best Price$129.99
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Type of CutLow TopLow TopLow TopLow TopLow TopLow Top
Weight490g - 510g390g - 410gNANA410g - 420gNA
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Adidas Harden Vol. 5 Review

Pros:
Good lateral stability
Cons:
Bad traction
Awful heel slippage

Performance of the Adidas Harden Vol. 5:

The bite of the Harden Vol. 5 is poor and doesn't grip well on dusty or even clean courts. Outdoors, the traction performs a little better and doesn't wear down too quickly. The combination of Boost and Lightstrike provides a responsive cushion setup with good court feel. However, reviewers complained about the rigid midsole that didn't flex well. The materials feel very plasticky and hard which is disappointing in a $130 signature sneaker. The support is good laterally, but reviewers had a lot of issues with heel slippage despite the thick Achilles pillows. Overall the Harden Vol. 5 is disappointing and wasn't recommended by any of the reviewers.
See all 4 reviews

Expert Reviews of the Adidas Harden Vol. 5:

Expert Rating: 6.9 (ranks #330 of 330)
10 - Amazing
0
9 - Great
0
8 - Good
1
7 - Average
3
6 - Subpar
0
5 - Poor
0
7.6
February 1, 2021
The Harden Volume 5 uses "new tech" for the sake of using "new tech". At $130 these aren't super expensive, but they don't do anything better than their predecessors and that is generous. I don't recommend these.
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7.0
February 3, 2021
I really wanted to like the Harden Volume 5, but I'm super disappointed with the performance of these. I'll probably never ball in them again, and I don't recommend them.
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6.6
January 23, 2021
The Harden Vol. 5 retails for $130 and considering the problems I had, these are a no go. I highly recommend staying away from this shoe unless you are a big Harden fan.
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6.5
The Harden Vol. 5 comes in at $130 which isn't bad for a signature shoe but is too much considering the performance of these. Unless you're a diehard Harden fan I can't see anyone hooping in these.
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User Reviews of the Adidas Harden Vol. 5:

User Rating: 6.7 (ranks #301 of 330)
10 - Amazing
3
9 - Great
0
8 - Good
3
7 - Average
8
6 - Subpar
8
5 - Poor
7
6.0
October 19, 2022
I buy this shoes here in Chile one year ago, the worst things about them is It weight. It feels todo heavy and uncomfortable, My feet sometimes hurt after or during a Game. The things i like are the desing, and the outdoor performace beacuse they work very well even after hours of playing
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6.4
October 28, 2023
Really disappointed in these. Got them for retail when they came out. Wore them 3 times and they were a disappointment. I got blisters, my foot hurt a lot, traction is awful. Only great thing is cushion. Do not buy these if you care about your feet.
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6.8
August 23, 2022
A very bulky and heavy shoe.Its a great shoe for playing outdoors but not great overall.Both the traction and the cushion ain't outstanding.I wouldn't recommend this shoe.
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8.0
January 19, 2022
Very good shoe. Traction is very good after breaking in , some times need to wipe. Cushion is very bad. Very stiff
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10.0
March 12, 2022
Best shoe ever created nothing will ever be wrong with it or the beard that comes with it.
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Traction of the Adidas Harden Vol. 5:

Expert Traction Rating: 6.8 (ranks #319 of 330)
User Traction Rating: 6.4 (ranks #299 of 330)
10 - Amazing
2
9 - Great
1
8 - Good
5
7 - Average
7
6 - Subpar
6
5 - Poor
12
8.0
February 1, 2021
The traction is good on clean courts or after wiping but doesn't keep the dirt away well.
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7.0
February 3, 2021
The traction was a little weird and reminded me a lot of the Jordan 31. It's really good on side-to-side movements, but I had some slipping issues with linear moves. I only got to try these outdoors.
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5.0
January 23, 2021
The traction is absolutely terrible. On the cleanest courts I could find, I would slide to a stop, and on courts with average dust it was awful.
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7.0
The traction took a while to break in and was disappointing even then. On clean courts it was okay, but with any dust, I had a lot of grip issues.
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Cushion of the Adidas Harden Vol. 5:

Expert Cushion Rating: 6.8 (ranks #322 of 330)
User Cushion Rating: 6.6 (ranks #294 of 330)
10 - Amazing
2
9 - Great
5
8 - Good
1
7 - Average
7
6 - Subpar
7
5 - Poor
11
6.0
February 1, 2021
The drop-in Boost insole was a big problem for me. There was a ton of slope around the heel that didn't let my foot sit properly in the shoe and caused a ton of heel slip. Even worse was the stiff shank on the bottom of the insole. It never broke in and was super stiff.
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7.0
February 3, 2021
There is no exposed midsole cushion at all, but there are Boost and Lightstrike drop-in soles. There is some slight compression in the heel, but everywhere else you don't feel anything. I think the drop in insole was just too thin.
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7.0
January 23, 2021
This cushion setup is pretty similar to the Pro Boost and I got a lot of court feel and responsiveness, but the impact protection was definitely lacking. I also don't like how hard it is to flex this shoe.
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7.0
With the combination of Boost and Lightstrike, I expected this cushion to be great. Unfortunately, it is bottom-heavy and rigid. Pretty comfortable and responsive, but just doesn't flex well.
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Materials of the Adidas Harden Vol. 5:

Expert Materials Rating: 6.8 (ranks #328 of 330)
User Materials Rating: 6.7 (ranks #300 of 330)
10 - Amazing
2
9 - Great
3
8 - Good
3
7 - Average
9
6 - Subpar
7
5 - Poor
9
8.0
February 1, 2021
These materials feel like a throwback to 2010 or 2012 and aren't premium to the touch at all. I didn't have any issues with pinching or hot spots though.
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6.0
February 3, 2021
The materials are pretty bad. The upper is super fused and glued down which provides a super-stiff feeling - not cozy or comfortable at all.
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7.0
January 23, 2021
The upper is very plasticky and doesn't feel great to the touch or very premium. It offers a lot of containment because of how rigid it is, but I'm not a huge fan of the materials.
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6.0
The materials are just not good. They are very hard, not flexible, and not breathable. They do not feel very premium and overall are disappointing.
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Support of the Adidas Harden Vol. 5:

Expert Support Rating: 7.5 (ranks #303 of 330)
User Support Rating: 6.9 (ranks #300 of 330)
10 - Amazing
4
9 - Great
5
8 - Good
3
7 - Average
5
6 - Subpar
7
5 - Poor
9
9.0
February 1, 2021
I had no issues with support and stability. These were just a wide as the Volume 3 in the forefoot and wider in the heel.
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7.0
February 3, 2021
Lateral containment is really really good in these, but heel lockdown is terrible. Even with the nice Achilles pads, my foot wanted to pop out the whole time. I had no issues with lateral stability.
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6.0
January 23, 2021
The support in the Vol. 5 was not good. The Achilles pillows felt nice, but didn't do their job very well and I had a ton of heel slippage. I could easily slide my foot out of the shoe even with the laces cranked down. These did have decent lateral support though.
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8.0
The lateral stability is good with a very wide base. I did have heel slippage even with the thick Achilles cushion pillows, so I had to tie down the laces a lot.
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Fit of the Adidas Harden Vol. 5:

Expert Fit Rating: 7.3 (ranks #315 of 330)
User Fit Rating: 6.9 (ranks #300 of 330)
10 - Amazing
3
9 - Great
1
8 - Good
9
7 - Average
6
6 - Subpar
6
5 - Poor
8
7.0
February 1, 2021
The Volume 5 is a lot bigger than normal sized shoes and was hard to feel nimble in. I did like the lack of headspace in the forefoot and there wasn't any side to side movement on the footbed. Again heel slippage was an issue.
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8.0
February 3, 2021
These run super long, so I went down half a size. The toe box is really snug and the overall fit is okay.
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8.0
January 23, 2021
The fit is pretty good and the materials conform nicely to your feet. The overall fit was decent.
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6.0
The Harden Vol. 5 a little long in the toe, but not enough that I had to go down half a size. Overall they just weren't comfortable and I had a lot of pain in my midfoot to the point where I had to stop playing in them.
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Durability of the Adidas Harden Vol. 5:

User Durability Rating: 7.5 (ranks #278 of 330)
10 - Amazing
6
9 - Great
2
8 - Good
6
7 - Average
2
6 - Subpar
3
5 - Poor
6

Outdoor of the Adidas Harden Vol. 5:

Expert Outdoor Rating: 100.0 (ranks #12 of 330)
User Outdoor Rating: 72.9 (ranks #101 of 330)
Good (100%)
18
Fair (50%)
3
Bad (0%)
5
good
February 3, 2021
Durability was good outdoors.
 More details
good
These held up better outdoors than they did indoors and the slipping wasn't as bad.
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Width of the Adidas Harden Vol. 5:

very narrow
3
slightly narrow
4
regular
12
slightly wide
11
very wide
1
regularly wide
February 3, 2021
These were normal width wise.
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slightly narrow
January 23, 2021
If you have wide feet be cautious with these because it is a bit tight in the midfoot area.
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Size of the Adidas Harden Vol. 5:

very small
4
slightly small
2
true to size
12
slightly long
13
very long
2
true to size
February 1, 2021
I went true to size.
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true to size
February 3, 2021
Go down half a size from your Adidas size.
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½ size large
January 23, 2021
These run a half size big.
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½ size large
True to size worked, but if you like a snug fit go down half a size.
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