Playing With D.O.N.: Reviews of Mitchell’s Issue #1 On the Court

The “Iron Spider” colorway came out at the end of August.

Donovan Mitchell’s signature shoe is a tough product to find. It has been selling out in stores across the country, no doubt the combined result of the Jazz guard’s burgeoning stardom and the popularity of the Marvel comics to which the whole line is linked.

The D.O.N.¹ Issue #1 comes in a variety of snazzy colorways, all with tie-ins to the Spider-Man franchise. The base price of the a.d.i.d.a.s. shoe is $100, although some sizes and colors can be found on Amazon.com for as little as $80. If you want the original red and blue colorway, you will likely have to wait — or pay a premium to a second-market seller.

But beyond colors and flashy designs aside, I was curious: how does the shoe fare as an actual basketball shoe? That is, after all, ostensibly its purpose. 

For many Jazz fans, on-court performance is secondary here; buying a signature shoe from a beloved Jazz player is a no-brainer even if the most athletic thing they plan to do in said kicks is pick up their groceries. For others — like this middle-aged veteran of pick-up hoops — it’s important to know how the D.O.N. does in that glorious 94-by-50 rectangle.

Before I committed to the Issue #1 as my next basketball shoe, I wanted to hear from folks who had actually worn the shoe to play ball. Naturally, I took to Twitter. A couple dozen people were kind enough to share their takes, and ultimately gave me the green light to pass them along to Salt City Hoops’ readers.

Here’s what I heard.

Fit

The D.O.N. has a unique design that cups the heel in a way that’s different from some other basketball shoes. Some of our Twitter friends found that to be a pleasant surprise, while others were thrown off.

When Ryan donned the D.O.N., he noticed this difference right away. “It felt weird in the heel before I started playing,” he said. “but I didn’t think twice about it when we started playing. Overall I really like them.”

Alex is a serious hooper who plays three to five times per week, and the heel design didn’t throw him too much. “DON Issue #1 are comfy. Heel took a day or two to get used to but now I don’t notice it. I wear a brace on one ankle always and still comfy. My feet don’t slide and they grip well. I’d recommend them.”

Ballislife_Cy added, “I do get some heel slippage because the achilles pillows are massive. It’s gone down a bit though since I’ve broken them in. It was never a huge problem, but at first it was a bit worrying.”

Overall, though, he’s happy with the shoe, especially for the price. “Super comfortable on court, the fit is great (mostly). For a budget shoe it feels nice.”

Like Ballislife_Cy, JLamarJazz also felt as though the higher heel support actually made it feel looser. “They are very cushioned and soft, the heel does feel kinda loose but I haven’t ever had it come close to coming out. I usually play in the 2017 Hyperdunks, but these are my new favorites.”

As far as overall fit, reviews there were mostly positive. Josh told me that his “fit perfectly from the first time I played. I like the wide base. It feels stable when making cuts. I knew I’d like them because Don is the man, but they are great shoes to play in.”

One watchout: try them on if you can, because a couple of people told me they felt a little tight, especially at first. Kirk eventually broke in his Venom colorway kicks. “I have wide feet,” he told me. “They were a bit tight at first (all shoes are on my wide feet), but after 2 times they are great.”

Jacob also told me that “they fit extremely tight imo,” although he later walked back the “extremely.” Still, he suggests sizing up by a half size if need be.

Shane was the only one to mention that he found the overall fit to be a “little bulky.” He told me that it was “hard to find the right size for my foot surprisingly,” so there’s another vote for making sure you try them on. “If you want a light shoe this wouldn’t be it, but I dig them.”

Support

So beyond how they fit, what do our friends say about the support they get from the Issue #1s?

As a slightly older dude who has rolled my share of ankles, I’ve always worn high tops. Real injury prevention people will tell you that relying on the shoe itself to keep your ankle in place is not the best form of protection anyway, but I’m just used to feeling that support, and there have been a time or two that it’s helped stabilize me just enough that I could get my weight off before an ankle turn got uglier. So I am always a bit nervous about transitioning to a lower shoe.

Daddy Court didn’t exactly allay those concerns with his comment: “Really like them. Not my favorite shoe I’ve ever played in. Super low cut with only cushion, not really support, on the ankle. Grip and other things are good.”

Others disagreed, though, and felt plenty safe and structurally supported. Even Joshua, who like me, has always put his trust in high tops. 

“Very comfortable, they fit very well if that makes sense,”Joshua said. “(They) hug the feet extremely well and great support on the sides and back for a lowtop shoe. I’m 31 and have always been a high top guy, but these are for sure the most supportive low tops I have worn in a very long time. Strong support on the sides gives me less pause about an ankle injury, I still wear a brace to be safe though.”

On the other hand, Houdini is used to low and mid tops, and was a quick convert to the D.O.N. “I play about 3x a week. Old shoe was Dame so I do like lower heels. Don is my favorite shoe since the TMac 2. The heel locks in and I like how the tongue is like a sock.”

Houdini wasn’t the only one who drew the parallel to Damian Lillard’s signature shoe, also an a.d.i.d.a.s line. Tristan pointed out that the D.O.N. “looks to be built similar to the Dame 5 support, which I love.” He’s heard good reviews from people he plays with who were wearing Mitchell’s shoe to hoop. “They said they were great.”

Dal, likes the support in the ankle, but feels that it’s lacking elsewhere: “Great ankle/heel support. Balled in them 4 times and the bottoms of my feet still hurt after running it back. Not as much arch support as I’d like but still a great shoe.”

Chase plays one to two times per week and likes the overall support he gets from Mitchell’s shoe. “Great lockdown. Initially wasn’t a fan. After breaking them in after one session, I love them. Great shoe.” When I checked back with him later, he assured me he “still love(s) them.”

Finally, a bit more on the heel and on overall support, this time from Jazz OD Offszn: “They aren’t the best low-tops I’ve played in but once you get used to the back of the heal they are pretty comfortable. Good support when making cuts (doesn’t feel like I’m going to hurt my foot/ank like some other shoes) and well cushioned for jumping when dunking/laying up/etc.”

Traction

While overall support seems to be a plus and fit seems to come down to eye (or really heel) of the beholder, one area that came up as a watch-out was the traction.

The negative is that the traction isnt that great, so if you play on a dusty court it’s kind of a killer,” said Ballislife_Cy. “I just use them as outdoor court shoes, and the traction is great there.”

More of the same from Jazz OD Offszn: “I’ve seen this posted already, but traction isn’t amazing. Don’t know if they just need to be broken in a bit more or what, but I also haven’t played on the cleanest of courts either.” He mentioned that he mostly plays on rec center courts and in school gyms.

Even though KCAirForce21 “really like(s) them” overall, he agreed that the traction isn’t the best. “The grip is a little lacking but there’s stuff out there to help with that if you look around. I had an older pair of KDs I wore when I played in college that I liked a ton, and I’d put the D.O.N.s behind them, to be honest.”

Shane weighed in again here, with more positive feedback. “I actually like the traction though,” he said, “and the comfort, which is big for me.”

Can’t please everyone

Of the 20+ tweeps who took time to share their experience with me, only one netted out in an entirely negative place. “Honestly, not a fan of playing in them,” Eric told me. “Not nearly as comfortable as Hardens or Primeknit.” Eric also weight in on the traction issue, telling me that “(the) grip struggles as well.”

But hey, one fully negative review out of more than 20 is pretty encouraging. And perspective makes all the difference, because for JustAnotherDad, it was fun just to play in something a little higher-end. “Played in them last night, loved them. Granted, my last pair was a mid-grade Nike I got from Ross, so my experience might not be valid. I was bombing contested long twos like a pro though!”

Add it all up

Overall, the masses convinced me on this one: I’ll be giving the D.O.N. Issue #1 a shot as my next basketball shoe.

It sounds as though this high top wearer may need to adjust to the higher heel and lower ankle, but overall I was encouraged by the tweeps’ comments about the support and mobility. When I tried them on in store — and for what it’s worth, mine were true to size, unlike what Jake and others mentioned — I felt what they were talking about. It’s not like I was running ladders in the a.d.i.d.a.s. store, but when I moved around a little to mimic some lateral slides and jumps, I felt well supported.

Soon, I’ll be following the footsteps — pun intended — of the kind reviewers above, to see how my shiny new pair of Iron Spider kicks fare out where it counts.