Although traction is significant for basketball either you are playing indoor or outdoor basketball. Still, you can’t perform well for indoor basketball, and the risk of injury has increased a lot if you don’t have an adequate grip between the shoes and the basketball court. So How to add grip to basketball shoes?
while playing basketball, there are several methods which we discuss in this article.
Shoe’s scientist has made a lot of effort to increase the grip of basketball footwear without effecting the player performance. Usually, the outsole grip has an indirect relation with the outsole rubber life.
How To Add Grip To Basketball Shoes – 5 Best Technique
There are many methods directly and indirectly (describe by NBA expert) by which you can increase the basketball shoe’s grip and enhance the traction and performance. So some workable method to increase your grip on basketball shoes are
Outsole Cleaning Method
Basketball Shoe Grip Enhancer Spray
Use Of Traction Map
Basketball Court cleaning
Get a new pair of shoes
Let’s have a deep dig into each
Outsole Cleaning Methods
There are many ways of cleaning the outsole of your shoes. You need to try and find out which one has best suited you.
Either you have expensive branded shoes or cheap shoes, you need to clean the shoe’s outsole now and then because the dirty article on the court will create a layer between your shoes, and this layer will reduce the traction or the grip of your shoes. You need to remove this layer of dirt.
The first method which most basketball player or the volleyball player has used is the wet towel method. In this method, you have a wet towel outside the court or a small wet towel along your wrist, which can easily remove the dirt layer.
2ndly you can use the dust removal brush and use this brush to clean the outsole of your shoe with the help of soap liquid. This scrubbing method will give you long-lasting cleaning as compare with the wet towel method.
Basketball Shoe Grip Enhancer Spray/Gel
Sometimes you feel that the above method is not working correctly, and you are slipping and lose your balance.
In that case, some traction sprays or gel for shoes available in the market enhance the grip of your shoe. Be careful while selecting this type of spray as it may harm your outsole rubber or decrease its life. You need to check its ingredient and also consult your shoe manufacturer to avoid any problem.
Use Of Slipp-Not Traction Matt
The 3rd best way to add grip to your basketball shoes is using a special traction enhancer mat/pad. Shoe traction pads will specially designed for indoor basketball or volleyball shoes. You may also see this Slipp-Nott traction mat in your gym beside your court. This type of pad is beneficial for every kind of shoe.
Basketball Court Cleaning
The only outsole cleaning method is not very effective if you only clean the outsole of the shoe. The cleaning of a basketball court with dry or wet mop is equally essential, and even it is more critical than the outsole cleaning. As per expert view, the primary source of the dirt particle is the court which gathers the dirt particle from the air and other sources.
The cleaning of the basketball court, again and again, will give excellent results to enhance the shoe’s traction.
It is advisable first to apply a dry mop and immediately uses the wet mop.
Get A New Pair Of Shoes
What happens if you try all the above methods, but still, you cannot increase the traction up to the required level. The straight reply to the question is to replace your old shoes with new ones. Every Shoe outsole has a specific traction life, so check with your shoe’s supplier about the expected life of your model.
You should change the shoes well before time and use that shoes for casual purposes but not for basketball. As Sports are very competitive and you should take care of every aspect
Disadvantages Of Cleaning Basketball Shoes Outsole
There are some disadvantages of cleaning basketball shoe outsole such as
Cleaning with excessive water will make the basketball shoes a bit slipper
If the towel is not wet enough, you might get more dirt on your shoe outsole, leading to injury.
As you are cleaning the shoes manually so then there are the chances that your shoes cleaning are not homogeneous.
Why Traction Is Important For Basketball
Basketball is the game of quick movement and the sudden increase or the decrease of the movement. So These types of movement gave the extra load on the shoes on the specific point.
The rubber didn’t resist appropriately due to the player weight or the dirt layer at these specifics points. That’s why we need to clean the shoe outsole or the basketball court as well.
Types Of Basketball Shoe Outsole Design
There are many basketball shoe outsole design has adoptive by the shoe manufacturer. The most common use design is the herringbone structure. Although other designs are also effective basketball player is delighted with herringbone. Some shoe brands have developed their customized basketball shoe outsole design.
Rubber Hardness & Traction of Basketball shoes
Outsole rubber hardness plays a vital role in the traction of basketball shoes, especially when you are playing on an indoor court. The Soft rubber has better traction, but its wears out quickly. On the other hand, the stiff rubber outsole has low traction force, but it is durable. Usually, Soft rubber outsole shoes have used for the indoor court, and hard rubber outsole shoes have used for the outdoor court.
Last Words
Firstly you have to buy basketball shoes with excellent traction having soft rubber.
2ndly clean the basketball shoes and the court more often during the game.
You are the only judge if of yourself, although what people are saying, follow at which your body responds appropriately and which shoes balance your foot posture that will also increase the grip of your basketball shoes with the court.
Frequently Asked Question
Q-1: How can I make my basketball shoes have more grip?
Ans: My top 5 recommendations to add grip in the basketball shoes are
Outsole Cleaning Method
Basketball Shoe Grip Enhancer Spray
Use Of Traction Map
Basketball Court cleaning
Get a new pair of shoes
Q-2: What to put on shoes to prevent slipping?
Ans: There are some methods you can minimize the slipping on the indoor court, such as
Scuffing the soles
Use of masking tape
Anti Slippage spry
Grip pads
Wipe-out outsole regularly
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