After one wearing, it’s upper stiff and unyielding, and with BALLS carefully placed at the rear of both of my feet, I figured the Weapon EVO was Converse’s way of politely including me in some sort of dubious ethnographic experiment intended to poke fun at the profound level of homoeroticism in basketball.

As it turns out, the EVO is simply Converse’s premier TEAM basketball shoe for 2009, and not a marked attempt at challenging my heterosexual sensibilities with an unusually named cushioning system. The system I’m referring to is called BALLS, a collection of spherically-shaped polyurethane marbles that are designed to impart a high level of resilience with a low-profile, generally comfortable feel. Cons debuted the platform on the Weapon EVO, which coincidentally, also resurrects the Chevron and Star logo from the archives, an emblem that hearkens way, way, way back.

I hooped in the white/red joints. But before we get to my thoughts, I would like to thank Paul and Molly for a pair and delivering on all of the sketches! Thanks!

I opened this post by writing that, initially, my on-court experiences with the EVO didn’t inspire thoughts of grandeur. Same goes for the second wearing, third, fourth, all the way up until the typing of this sentence. I’ve rocked them for approximately twelve hours and have even walked to class in them a couple of times, ambling around shards of broken glass, murky puddles, bird doo-doo and the like. Finally around the tenth hour, the shoe’s ultra-tuff upper began conforming to my foot, becoming more and more supple and fitting comfortably around my ankle. I attribute this (and almost expected the lengthy break-in period) to the EVO’s Y-Bar ankle system, thick leather, and TPU heel cup – elements that provide unbeatable support (I’ll touch more on this later) but lack the inherent flexibility I personally dig.

The EVO’s most troubling element, though, was this BALLS cushioning. In preparation for this post, I peeked at the other “literature” – reviews and interviews – various sneaker websites had on the shoe. Everybody I read glowed with positives. Now, keep in mind that most of the interviews were tethered on the colored claims of Converse employees themselves, but most everything indicated that the tech had earned its stripes and the W.E. was a reliable, if not comfortable option for hoop.

This apparent “comfort” was not there for me, comrades. I don’t know if I weigh enough (185 lbs. when soaking wet) to activate the cushioning, but the BALLS heel and EVA foam forefoot feel as lifeless now as they were on arrival. Again, others are bringing back glowing reports to camp, so I’m not entirely certain what’s up with my pair and why they’re not performing up to snuff.

My other beef with the shoe is ventilation, or in the case of the EVO, lack thereof. There’s mesh covering the logo and some perforations around the collar, but that’s about all I was left to work with. I know, I know – I’ve griped about my sweaty feet on countless occasions during my time here with Bounce – but, yo, who wants to bring extra socks to the gym?! My joints were sticky with sweat just minutes into my shooting sessions, an annoyance I found impossible to reckon with.

Nevertheless, there were some aspects of the EVO that brought some bread to the table. Ankle support and heel hold are insanely good (if you appreciate noticeable support) once the rigid upper softens up. Simply string the ‘VO up and the Y-Bar/TPU combination provide dependability well into the night. Traction is great too. Simple, straightforward, semi-recessed herringbone grooves will grip the parquet at your local indoor spot provided the janitor’s doing his job with at least average consideration towards cleanliness. Transition, from front to back, was smooth like velvet from the jump and has remained that way until now.

Should Converse put all of their eggs in the Weapon EVO or BALLS cushioning moving forward? I remain unconvinced. . . For now, that is. Others have touted that the sneaker is worth the ducats, but due to a cushioning system that doesn’t seem very responsive to me, I can’t echo the same sentiments. If anyone gives them a try, please report back and let me know what you think. . . I used to think Digable Planets was cool so my discretion should be scrutinized every now and then. Gotta make sure I’m staying grounded over here!

On a completely unrelated note, the amount of stares I get while rocking these is downright uncanny. People seem way too intimidated by me to say something ever since I started walking with this more pronounced “gangsta lean”, but I catch both girls and boys gawkin’ at the heat regularly!