Do Not Buy These Yeezys From Adidas’ Post-Kanye Fire Sale
Despite heavy discounts, much of the remaining Yeezy product isn’t worth buying.
Following my last piece, Adidas is currently selling off the remaining stock of their collaborative sneakers made with Kanye West at MSRP or reduced prices. Though there are some great options on sale, as previously highlighted, there are also some to avoid — at least for now.
If You Like Them, Wait to Buy Them
450
The 450s are the best purchase here, as the dumpling-inspired shoes are among the most creative and have already been discounted from $210 to $105, but only in the light brown colorway. However, if this is a style you like, expect black and white pairs to release in the coming months, also at a discount, which would be my recommendation.
KNIT RNR
The KNIT RNR is available in a wide range of fun styles, but they’re at full price and not selling out, so I would wait for a reduction. To be clear, though, only buy these if you like the style. Though they look like wrapped FOAM RNRs, they are far less comfortable and surprisingly stiff.
The Way Too Overpriced: KNIT RNR BT, 950 M, and 500 HIGH
Yeezy has always had odd pricing on their boots, and so it is with the last available pairs, which would be a rip-off even at half price.
NSLTD BT
The NSLTD BT — Kanye-speak for “Insulated Boot” — are probably the easiest recommendation here, though not because they’re well-priced, comfortable, or beautiful, because they are none of those things. Rather, it’s because there are no boots quite like them. They’re quite well made, and if their look is for you, a $360 MSRP makes them far more affordable than they ever were on the resale market. However, that’s still a lot of money for a very ugly, rather uncomfortable pair of shoes, so if you don’t love the look, do not buy them. At one point, Kanye was seen wearing an all-black colorway, and I would buy those if they were available at that price, but that’s because an all-black look is a lot more wearable and I like collecting interesting footwear. If you’re just looking for winter boots, save your money.
KNIT RNR BT
The KNIT RNR BT are even stranger-looking and more expensive at $400, but again, that’s a lot less expensive than they ever have been before. Worth noting: despite being called KNIT RNR “boots,” they aren’t actually boot versions of the Knit Runner and are even less comfortable. Also, they only come in bright yellow and cream.
950 M
The 950 M are a well-made, conventional, functional pair of boots with styling inspiration from duck boots available in a classic all-black colorway. If they were priced reasonably, these would be in the recommended section, but they inexplicably retail at $600.
500 HIGH
The 500 HIGH were never actually released during Kanye’s time at Adidas and are an interesting, chic pair — almost as good as the 500 sneakers they’re based on — but at $300, they’re a hard recommendation when the DSRT BT is also available, which comes in more colorways for $100 cheaper. One interesting feature: their lace tips can be broken open to reveal fire strikers.
Do Not Buy
BSKTBL KNIT
Kanye’s second attempt at a performance basketball sneaker was even less focused on casual use than the QNTM, but significantly worse. The BSKTBL KNIT was very difficult to put on or take off, not particularly comfortable on-foot, and on-court not significantly better than cheaper, more wearable competitors. If they were available at 50% off in the stylish “Azure” colorway, some might be tempted, but a $300 price tag for the horrid “Energy Glow” colorway is idiotic.
POWERPHASE
Kanye’s take on the Adidas Powerphase is one of the most bewildering shoes to release during their partnership, as it’s just a lightly-branded version of a grey suede Adidas football shoe. There’s nothing to get worked up about here, but there are better-made, more interesting shoes available, so there’s no need to pay $120 for these.
700 MNVN
A sequel/spinoff to the successful 700 line, these are ugly, chunky shoes with reflective writing on the side and no good colorways. I never understood why the Yeezy team thought these were worth releasing — they’re uninteresting yet offensive and somewhat resemble oversized children’s shoes. A 50% reduction bringing them down to $110 hasn’t changed my view.
380
Like the 350 CMPCT — my strongest recommended shoe of the recent Yeezy sales — the 380 was also intended to be a successor to the popular 350 V2. The 380 wasn’t made in many colorways, but most of them were a garish blend of moldy earth tones and acidic green or bold blue, and they’re frankly unwearable. They’re down from $230 to $115, but if you want an inexpensive, comfortable shoe in this rough profile, buy the more comfortable, better-looking CMPCT.