6 Best Low Top Nike Basketball Shoes in 2025

Showing impressive results in our lab and playtests, the Nike LeBron 23 becomes the ultimate low-top Nike basketball shoe in our catalogue!

We think that the shoe justifies its high-end retail price by packing the brand’s most advanced technologies and premium materials. We’re talking an ultra-responsive ZoomX foam that elevates the LeBron 23’s energy return by 10-12% above the average, making it 72.1% in the forefoot and 70.4% in the heel!

The explosive ride of this low-top Nike shoe is complemented by solid impact protection. A high shock absorption reading of 112 SA in the heel makes it a great shoe for jumps, even for the bigs among us!

The LeBron 23 also boosts our confidence with a stunningly supportive platform that eliminates the risk of foot spills, twists, and wobbles during powerful cuts, shuffles, and other directional moves. Impossible to twist with bare hands, this Nike shoe earns the highest torsional rigidity score of 5/5!

Our positive impression wouldn’t be complete without the shoe’s grippy outsole! Showing a solid friction coefficient of 0.77 in our traction tests, it grabs the court in all directions and sticks hard on shifty cuts.

With a record-breaking friction score of 0.89 and a strong bite on hardwood, the Nike KD 18 offers the best traction among the low-top Nike basketball shoes!

Paired with the shoe’s stable construction and solid ankle support, the shoe’s grippy outsole supports sharp cuts and quick direction changes, making it perfect for shifty movement and tight footwork! There are no awkward foot rollovers thanks to the KD 18’s high torsional rigidity (4/5) and wide forefoot base (116.0 mm in the widest part).

Loaded with Air Zoom units, the midsole of this low-top Nike shoe takes the edge off our landings with a high shock absorption of 115 SA in the heel and 90 SA in the forefoot! What’s more, it also makes our take-offs snappier with a top-tier energy return of 72.7%! All while having a grounded, below-average heel stack of 26.7 mm!

Breaking the limits of how bouncy a basketball shoe midsole can be, not just for Nike but across the entire industry, the Nike G.T. Cut 3 Turbo is the undisputed low-top Nike offering with the best energy return!

Charged with a large slab of the cutting-edge ZoomX foam and enhanced with a carbon-infused Turbo Plate, the G.T. Cut 3 Turbo showed a sky-high energy return of 83.2% in the forefoot and 71.5% in the heel!

Significantly higher than the category average, it gives us unmatched explosiveness on first steps, jump shots, and layups, and feels like an actual race shoe in sprints! And the best part is all this energy feels controlled thanks to this low-top Nike shoe’s stable base. Foot spills and ankle rolls are just not happening here, thanks to the shoe’s high torsional rigidity and containment.

Last but not least, the shoe’s high friction score of 0.81 ensures elite-level outsole traction on hardwood, keeping us surefooted during high-speed action!

Pulling cues from the brand’s legendary low-top Kobe shoes, the minimal construction of the Sabrina 3 earns our favour as the best lightweight low-top basketball shoe from Nike!

Tipping the scales at only 12.4 oz (352g), it is 1.5 oz lighter than the average basketball shoe in our catalogue. However, it feels even lighter on foot, thanks to the grounded feel of its low-stack platform. Our calliper measured the latter at only 26.1/20.6 mm, and the shoe’s below-average drop of 5.5 mm makes the court feel even more pronounced!

We also experienced great manoeuvrability and freedom of movement courtesy of the Sabrina 3’s flexible forefoot. Requiring only 15.5N of force to bend by 30 degrees, this Nike kick also proved to be 30% more flexible than average!

There is not much impact protection in this Sabrina Ionescu’s shoe, but responsiveness is guaranteed with its tried-and-true Cushlon foam and a small Air Zoom unit in the forefoot. Our lab tests measured its energy return at the top-tier readings of 70.9% in the forefoot and 60.9% in the heel!

We thoroughly enjoyed the fast and nimble feel of this low-top Nike shoe!

Equipped with a hard-wearing outsole, the Nike LeBron Witness 9 shines as our best low-top Nike shoe for outdoor courts!

First of all, the durability-to-price ratio of this kick is mind-blowing! After drilling its outsole rubber with a Dremel for 18 seconds at 10K RPM, the dent was barely noticeable at only 0.6 mm! And when we measured its outsole thickness at an above-average 4.4 mm, we had no further doubts about this Nike kick’s readiness for concrete and asphalt!

Not to mention the shoe’s sturdy upper material, which also passed a Dremel test with a high durability score of 4/5!

Slipping and falling on the blacktop is not the most pleasant experience, and the LeBron Witness 9’s grippy outsole lowers that risk. Its chunky herringbone outsole pattern showed a particularly high friction score of 0.84, boosting our confidence in abrupt stops and sharp cuts.

Considering all these benefits and this low-top Nike shoe’s affordable price point, we can forgive its hefty weight of 15.1 oz (428g).

Among basketball shoes priced under £100, we believe that the Nike G.T. Cut Academy offers the most value for money as the best budget low-top Nike basketball shoe.

Cutting into its midsole, we found that the shoe comprises good-quality Renew foam with an Air Zoom unit in the forefoot. Our lab tests showed that this cushioning setup is more optimised for shock absorption with a standard reading of 104 SA in the heel and an above-average measurement of 91 SA in the forefoot.

However, its below-average energy return makes it less snappy and responsive than the flagship G.T. Cut models.

Performing cuts, crossovers, and defensive slides felt stable and surefooted in the Nike G.T. Cut Academy, thanks to the shoe’s high torsional rigidity (5/5) and secure containment.

And the icing on the cake - this low-top Nike shoe weighs only 12.1 oz (342g), almost 2 oz lighter than average!