Harden Vol. 4 Delivers Another adidas Model featuring Lightstrike

Today, adidas Basketball introduces Harden Vol. 4, inspired by James Harden’s creative freedom on and off the court. The lightest Harden signature shoe to-date features LIGHTSTRIKE midsole cushioning

Source: Free to Create: adidas Embraces James Harden’s individuality with Harden Vol. 4

Since the N3XT L3V3L arrived a year ago I’ve been waiting for the new cushion system to arrive on trainers and other sneakers for the Three Stripes. The Next Level was very limited in release and was lumped together with other footwear giving it the appearance of being just another product from adidas. That was a major mistake in my opinion.

Under Armour and adidas are Failing Finish Line

The mistake was two-fold. The retailers carrying the shoe didn’t know what the tech was and adidas didn’t help the retailers merchandise the product. The Harden line has fallen victim to this two pronged problem since it released. As Footlocker House of Hoops is Nike driven, it leaves the Harden line with very little room to operate. In other words, the Harden line loses the step back J because, the wall space is limited inside of the biggest retailer in the country. Harden isn’t really carried in urban accounts so the Harden line doesn’t really have a strong footprint.

With the number of sneaker models available, basketball shoes aren’t in high demand. Even Nike has seen sales slow on its models and it doesn’t matter the price range. The LeBron doesn’t sell at 200 and the PG has faltered although it’s only 110. adidas wasn’t helping themselves as the Harden with BOOST retailed at 160 which rang up higher than the KD12 for Nike. The Lillard line only rings up at 110 to 120, but there isn’t a lot of excitement around these signature players and their shoes. Which leads to the question of the chicken or the egg?

Signature shoe sales are slow because of the abundance of options in footwear now… or are signature lines slow because the athletes aren’t as engaging and access to the players is so readily available via social?

Those two questions are critical and require serious discussion, but they move me away from my excitement about Lightstrike arriving in the Harden and what this means for the line up. Harden is easily adidas’ most marketable athlete. He’s heavy into fashion and an MVP. Why is it that there isn’t any resale value around his footwear and a lack of brand heat? Let’s list a few reasons:

1. BOOST caused Harden’s line to suffer from a lack of follow through in design. BOOST can only be painted. It can’t be delivered in a lot of unique colors. This is a design flaw in the material that limits just how far the brand can push design. For a guy like Harden that leaves the upper the only place where creativity can be captured. Lightstrike removes this issue and it rings up at a pricepoint lower than any of his previous models. We immediately see the difference in design with the Lightstrike cushioning on the Pink Lemonade and the Barber Shop.
2. BOOST is heavy. BOOST in a running shoe isn’t that bad. In the Harden the amount needed to protect him from impact produced an extremely clunky shoe. The Harden simply couldn’t crossover into streetwear because the shoe was heavy and even when they attempted to create a LS model for lifestyle it didn’t work. Lightstrike will allow for those who see the mix of materials in the design as a model that can be rocked off the court. As much as I liked the Next Level, the high cut and laceless look was an acquired taste and couldn’t be worn with the apparel that’s being designed right now.
3. Harden lacked a number two. With the spotlight so heavy on Harden all of these years, adidas didn’t feel the need to work to establish his alpha role, so they didn’t. Think about the fact that Harden’s most famous commercial spot is a State Farm commercial with Chris Paul and a Footlocker spot with his chest out. If I ask the question, “what is Harden’s dopest adidas spot?” No one can answer that question. No. One. Westbrook is going to force adidas to create more to bring attention to their athlete. If they don’t, the small momentum Harden’s line kind of had, will be the same as Curry’s line which fell off when KD arrived. Steph and Klay, Curry sold. Steph and KD? No one really liked this team. Westbrook and Harden? Must see tv and you better believe Nike will be ready. Will adidas be ready?
4. At 160-180 dollars a pair even when there was a Harden that was limited or aesthetically dope, resale prices overall have decreased and resale in general releases is all but dead. In a recent article I showed how much my resale prices have decreased since 2017. This drop in resale has killed the casual flip of footwear from Footlocker and Finish Line. As I’ve established resale indicates whether a company is trending positively or negatively and unfortunately for adidas, outside of Yeezy, there isn’t any real resale value in any of their footwear. The drop in price to 130 allows the Harden to flip at 160 with the use of a 20 dollars off coupon from Footlocker. That’s a big deal as the Amazon reseller will be able to lock up locations where the shoe isn’t sold (which is a lot of places).

Harden Vol. 4 will be available beginning October 12 with “Barbershop,” followed by “Pink Lemonade,” available on October 26, “Candy Paint” on October 31 and “Cookies & Cream” on November 15, all for $130 at adidas.com and select retailers, with additional colorways available throughout the season.

Lightstrike allows for the most important play adidas can make to shift the Harden into casual wear: price. It also allows for an updated design that no longer relies on a dated technology that simply isn’t inspiring people to buy. The problem is adidas is not doing a lot of marketing with video, so the educational aspect around their product is sorely lacking. There isn’t a discussion about who designed this Harden. I don’t understand Lightstrike (I do, but a person new to the tech hasn’t been taught what it is) and there isn’t a creative combining of Lightstrike and Harden in any catchy advertising. The Harden line may as well be like the Rose line which is in its 10th iteration, but doesn’t even garner any introduction or discussion on any of adidas Basketball’s channels. It’s strictly an Asian area launch. Talk about a wasted redemption song. If adidas doesn’t begin treating Harden as a premium experience (not price, but copy and marketing) I think the line will follow the same path as Rose and to me that sucks (not the best word choice, but it is what it is).