The latest of the Kobe shoe line (Kobe VI is just around the corner) is hailed by many as the best basketball shoe ever made, that’s why I have three of these suckers. This is looking like a trend for this shoe line as when the Zoom Kobe IV (ZKIV) came out, it too was crowned best shoe ever & now it passes its crown to the new winner, its younger brother the Zoom Kobe V (ZKV).
This is the slimmer, lighter, more fashionable & hip younger brother you envy ‘coz he gets all the attention now that he’s come out of his shell. The ZKV basically lost the excess fat & muscles to be able to fit in those skinny jeans & shirt then performs on the dance floor better than you imagined he 
would.
You have to remember though with all those materials gone the ZKV barely has enough to protect you from a beating during the game, especially if you want to scrap, hustle, & dive for rebounds & loose balls. But remember it wasn’t dubbed best BBall shoe if it didn’t have many positives. The breakdown:
TRACTION
Looking at the heartbeat pattern on the outsole I was skeptical at first as to how this can be better compared to the traditional pattern in other shoes. After playing a bunch of times with this shoe, I barely noticed the difference compared to all my previous BBall shoes except for the ZKIV which I still had better traction & control. This could be because that the pattern is farther apart from one another that it might have less rubber on the floor when making a move. With this, I am wondering how the Zoom Kobe VI with its honeycomb pattern & farther apart pattern lines would perform once its used on a fairly clean wooden court.
Nonetheless I never had any issues with driving or cutting to the basket & I actually felt I was a bit faster due to the improved toe-to-heel transition, flexibility, & lightweight materials on this shoe. On defense, I did notice a slight difference as the side-to-side traction & backpedaling is a relatively different movement which probably will cause you to be a split-second slower to react. Although like I said, I have never had any major or even slightly minor issues with the traction as I have never slipped or slid while using this shoe, unlike some previously released Nike Flight models. Overall, traction is great & responsive enough for you to do what you want, when you want.
CUSHIONING
The ZKV sports a phylon midsole & dual zoom bags which is smaller than 
most Nike basketball shoes on the market (e.i. Nike Hyperdunk 2010 has bigger Zoom Bags). The reason for the lack of materials is the lightweight feature, which is also one of the reasons why it’s a great shoe, because you basically can feel the floor more, have you lower to the ground, & therefore have excellent control of your movement.
The ZKVs’ cushioning is not one of its strong points, which is the difference between this shoe & most full-length air bag shoes, like the Lebron VIII (which I will review soon). With full-length air bag shoes you will have less mobility & control, as compared to zoom air bag shoes, since you are higher to the ground which should result in more protection & support. Same 
concept as a sports car compared to a pickup truck, they have different uses & obviously lack each others’ strengths.
The insoles are thinner than most insoles but provide enough for you not to bruise your heel. The zoom bags honestly provide enough cushioning for most basketball moves by wing players but can cause shin splints to players who are heavy runners & jumpers. As much as I want to hype up this part of the shoe more, there basically isn’t much to rave about as this isn’t anywhere near its’ strong suit. The following topic is though…
Breathability
Breathability for some reason is excellent as I tried using double socks & my feet never once felt hot. My feet easily gets warm & I normally would remove most shoes in-between games & put them back on when I would start playing again. The KD II is an excellent shoe but I always always remove it after each game to let my feet breathe. I suppose it’s the thin material or the low cut wherein the exhaust comes out easily but whatever it is, my feet feel so cool in these babies!
FIT
This is probably the one of the best fitting shoes I have ever worn as it hugs most of your foot & with its low cut feature allows you to have freedom of movement. It has a noticeably lower cut than the ZKIV 
& has a durable but flexible mesh material covering a small amount of foam padding around the collar which results in the added freedom.
If you tie your laces to the topmost eyelet, which you should when playing BBall (more on this later), you will feel the snug fit of the shoe. The upper is composed mostly of Flywire 2.0 which is more durable, form-fitting, & lighter than its predecessor making it feel like it’s part of your feet. The Flywire is covered by a durable & flexible patent leather material for all colorways except one (I believe the Dark Knight is not patent leather). To test the flexibility of the ZKV try bending it until the front tip touches the heel cup & your shoe will be fine, I think it’s the only BBall shoe that can do that & live to play again.
As mentioned, when playing BBall you have to tie your laces all the way up to the top to reduce chances of injury & also maximize the fit & technology of the shoe. Those eyelets on the top aren’t there for looks but for functionality & most people don’t realize that.
In my opinion, this has one of the best heel cups on any shoe & probably even better than the ZKIV. The shoe runs true to size & since this shoe is dependent on its snug, tight fit to perform, I would recommend you not settle for anything less than your actual size. So if you get your correct size, tie your laces all the way up, & with its excellent heel cup the ZKV will make you feel like you are wearing feathers on your feet instead of shoes.
Conclusion
Best BBall shoe ever? Currently? I would have to say it depends. If you are a wing player, no matter what height, it is the second best shoe ever… the best for me is still the ZKIV as scoring is not the only thing a player in any position should be doing. For other types of BBall players, forget about it, try the Air Jordan 2010 it’s a more versatile shoe even if it has full-length zoom bags. My rating for the ZKV is a 97.9/100 while for reference the ZKIV is 98/100.
