Reebok Shaq Attaq review

The Reebok Shaq Attaq is the first signature shoe of the famous dunker Shaquille O’Neal. It is going to be a good pick for you are looking for a shoe that offers the following:

• a cushioning system that does not bottom out so soon, especially in the heel area
• features and functions that suit the playing style of a typical centre
• an amazingly firm outsole that contributes to speed and control
• a worthy homage to Shaquille O’Neal

This basketball shoe from Reebok is not for those who want a well-ventilated pair. The upper of this shoe just does not breathe at all. We discovered that players are better off getting the Reebok Question Mid.

Those players who want lighter basketball shoes may not find this shoe satisfying. Other Reebok shoes are also known to be weighty. If you are willing to try a shoe from another brand, we recommend the Nike LeBron 20 as it's just as well-cushioned yet 2 ounces lighter. There is an even lighter version called the LeBron NXXT GEN.

The midsole of the Shaq Attaq surely felt elevated, especially around the heel area. Using a calliper, we learned that the heel stack is way higher than average at 37.2 mm.

The thick heel prevented the shoe from bottoming down way too soon, even when we did a lot of aggressive heel strikes.

There was no heel tab, and this is OK. We did not have problems wearing or taking off the shoe, anyway.

A high heel stack coupled with an average forefoot stack resulted in an especially high drop. Our calliper measured it to be 14.8 mm.

This setup was practically appealing to us because of our propensity to do a lot of heel strikes, especially when the games turn a little intense.

The softness of the midsole is just around average, and we did not experience any significant issues with it. It delivered impact protection when needed, but the experience was not as amazing as what the Nike LeBron 20 could deliver.

Our HA durometer gave it a rating of 25.9.

The insole is slightly thicker than the average insole at 4.8 mm, and we appreciated how spongy it felt underfoot.

At its widest part, the toebox is 105.5 mm wide. This figure is significantly higher than average.

However, we still couldn't recommend this shoe to wide-footers because it tapers quite aggressively toward the tip. The toebox is only 73.5 mm wide at the big toe. 

We felt our side-to-side movements to be sufficiently supported by this Reebok shoe. The sidewalls prevented our feet from shifting excessively without sacrificing comfort and freedom of movement.

While playing, not once did we even think about twisting our feet. We also appreciated how stable our runs were. We did manual twists on the Reebok Shaq Attaq back in the lab, and we gave it a 4 out of 5 for torsional rigidity.

Admittedly, the heel counter is not the stiffest that we've ever tested. Fortunately, this observation does not mean that it's flimsy and unreliable. It provided enough support to keep the rearfoot in place. After giving it a nice squeeze in the lab, we gave the heel counter a 3 out of 5 for stiffness.

It is only slightly more pliable than the average.

The midsole platform of this shoe provided a bit of extra space in the forefoot. Using a calliper, we found this area to be slightly wider than average at 116.9 mm. Its width allowed our feet to splay freely during takeoffs.

The width of the heel area is just around the average at 89.0 mm, which did not pose any issue because the forefoot already provided the width that we needed (and actually enjoyed).

Using a digital force gauge, we learned that the Shaq Attaq needs 40.3N of force so it can be bent at 90 degrees. Its flexibility does not deviate much from the average.

Not too flimsy, not too constricting and rigid. This was how we experienced this kind of structure.

Though it did not feel like a brick on our feet, we still felt the Shaq Attaq weighing down our first steps. Our in-lab weighing scale showed that it is indeed on the heavier side at 16.7 ounces or 473 grammes.

Much like the athlete behind this shoe, it is one of the heaviest hoop shoes we've ever tested in our lab! It is more than 2.5 oz heftier than average.

Getting only a 1 out of 5 in our breathability assessments, the Reebok Shaq Attaq is among the hottest (quite literally) shoes out there. 

Both smoke and light find it hard to pass through the upper material.

We did a close examination of the upper through the microscope. We saw that it doesn't have any perforations that would have allowed air to pass through.

The upper just looks like one solid mass that keeps all out, including air. Those with sweaty feet should prepare for a deluge.

The non-breathable upper surely did not come totally empty-handed: it offered tremendous durability. We did the Dremel test on it, and it was just child's play for the toebox of the Reebok Shaq Attaq!

As you can see, the damage incurred by the Reebok Shaq Attaq, which got a perfect 5, is much less than the damage seen on the Harden Stepback 3 from Adidas, which only got a 3 out of 5 from us.

The heel padding is also amazingly sturdy. Just like the toebox, this part of the shoe got a perfect 5 for durability.

As can be seen in the closeup shot blow, our Dremel drilling into it barely left a mark.

Based on the readings made by our HC durometer, the hardness of the outsole is significantly higher than average. Our durometer returned a reading of 88.7 HC.

This firmness of the sole allowed us to gain more control over our movements. We also enjoyed how it helped us accelerate easily.

In spite of being hard/firm, the outsole did not fare any better than average in our durability test. Our 22-second Dremel drilling created 1.0 mm of damage. 

We acknowledge that this is not the best pick for outdoor use (the Nike Cosmic Unity 3 is!), but we still believe that using this shoe outdoors from time to time won't hurt.

Our calliper measurements showed that the outsole of the Reebok Shaq Attaq has an outsole that is slightly thicker than average. Specifically, we measured it to be 4.8 mm thick. 

Logically, the thicker sole allows this shoe to last longer even with occasional outdoor use simply because there is more material to 'burn.'

We did not experience any traction problems. Whenever we needed to stop or make a quick change in direction, the outsole of the Shaq Attaq was grippy enough for us to proceed without worries.

The unique mix of patterns on the outsole really did their job well.

At 9.0 mm, the padding in the tongue is just about as thick as the average.

This Reebok shoe's non-gusseted design allowed us to move more freely. It also made tongue adjustments a bit easier.

There was no heel tab, and this is OK. We did not have problems wearing or taking off the shoe, anyway.

The insole was removable. So it was quite easy to free up some space whenever we needed to wear orthotics.