How to Increase Grip on Basketball Shoes: Tips and Tricks
Indoor game requires shoe grip that is why I understand how important shoes can be in a game. Regardless of the activity, basketball, volleyball, badminton or racquetball or racquet ball or even fencing one requires to stay glued to the surface of the floor for those quick moments of stoppage and spins. But what do you do when your shoes just are not offering that grip you require?
New players often ask how to increase the grip or traction on their basketball shoes or other sports shoes. Solutions of a kind, like washing the bottom of your shoes with hands, or using gel or hairspray can work for a while but have their drawbacks. In this guide, you will learn all about how to increase grip on basketball shoes and useful tips and tricks.
First, Why Are Your Basketball Shoes Losing Their Grip?
Those of you who play basketball on a daily basis might have pondered the fact that basketball shoes do not have as much traction as they used to. This can be as a result of a number of reasons which include friction, dust, and other debris, vigorous movement and the type of court. They can be divided into 3 categories which can make the sole of your basketball shoes to get slippery at some point.
The first is shoe-stressing and impactful or else, factors that abrasion of the outer sole texture. This usually occurs when your shoe soles sustain continuing force on abrasive court surfaces and or movement by the players. The second of them is clean and no proper maintenance of premises that have to be clean and properly maintained. Dirt, debris, bacteria, moisture, and humidity are the culprits to blame for the slippery shoe, making a hold on it less ideal. The third type of factor is other factors which include things such as aging naturally, or indeed, the type of material that has been used in the outsole of the shoe.
Once you identify the factors that are causing your basketball shoes to lose their grip, you can intervene in the right way to enhance the traction characteristics of basketball shoes. It may be advisable to clean and maintain the shoes, get the right type of shoe that will appropriate for the courts and in the event that the shoes are worn out they should be replaced to avoid slipping on the courts.
How to Increase Grip or Traction on Basketball Shoes?
In the Game: What NOT to do!
When you are playing basketball, there are some activities that should not be done if you want to enhance the grip or the traction of the basketball shoes. It is prohibited to use hand and do not apply grip gel/lotion/hair spray/hand sanitizer on the bottom sole of your shoes. All of these methods are not very permanent solutions and do not yield any substantive gains.
Wiping the sole of your shoes with your hands is a common practice among basketball players to increase grip and traction. But such practice is not advised because of some dangers for instance skin inflammation, loss of water, and slipping over and falling down. It is also unwise to use a towel when you are doing this as the rubber soles will become slippery or some parts of the shoes will still be dirty.
Some usual solutions are putting on some grip gel or lotion on the soles of your shoes is another way of ensuring you get a good grip on the court. However, this solution is also not effective and practical. Second, the gel requires time to dry and the problem it solves is that the shoes acquire a lot of dirt that accumulates on the shoe’s soles making them slippery. Hand-sanitizer or hair-spray application on basketball shoes is similarly discouraged because they actually make the outsoles slip instead of stick, also have contents that are not so appropriate for shoe materials, and offer a short-lived, though helpful, increase in friction-and thus adhesion.
WHAT TO DO INSTEAD: Get a Traction Mat!
Experienced players know how important it is to stay on their feet during a game, so they invest in a traction mat. A traction mat or traction board or sticky mat is a disposable adhesive sheets mounted on a rigid platform. When in the middle of a game your shoes become less grippy, you just need to step on a traction mat and off it repeatedly. It can stick on all the soiling on your shoes and give the sole its gripping ability in as little as few seconds adhesion. If for instance, the top surface of the adhesive has become dirty, you just remove the dirt and you get a fresh new layer on your traction mat.
Moreover, these mats come with a number of sheets, like 30, 60, or 75 sheets. Furthermore, they are made from a rigid material (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene Terpolymer) to fully support high impact; thus one can stomp on them whenever one is playing a game affectionately without the least worry. Despite gels and hairspray/hand sanitizer or wiping the bottom of the shoes during a game, these mats provide much more option. It is possible to do them, and you do not have to redo them every few minutes as can be irritating at times. On the other hand, compact and high-strength materials of the mats provide good friction and ensure that you do not slip in the course of using the equipment.
Or, Get a Grip Spritz Spray!
For people who have a problem with cleaning the adhesive mess on the outsole after every game or simply do not like the idea of having shoes covered with sticky material, we have another option to offer. The new Grip Spritz is a spray which when applied on basketball shoes, then they shall be able to better control the ground better. You do not have to continuously apply it and it does not come with adhesive backed strips. This means it washes and revitalizes the rubber soles of your shoes and does not leave a mess as you find with other washing mediums.
It does not matter how old the shoes are, Grip Spritz can easily clean the soles removing the dirt and dust without affecting the material. It will not contain alcohol or any other chemical that might dry out the outsole like what we often see with hair spray/hair sanitizer. And they included the Spritz Mitt, a folded cotton towel which doubles up as a pouch to dry your shoes. Just spray it directly on the bottom of your shoes and wipe with the cloth, and you get your grip shoes for the game.
After the Game: Clean and Maintain Your Shoes Properly!
After the game you should clean your shoes and should place them in a cool dry place until the next occasion of use. This is how you can easily clean your basketball shoes to increase their grippiness after a game:
- Get a soft brush or toothbrush, mild soap, and warm water.
- Take out the shoe laces and insoles which come with the shoes.
- Wash it on the soapy water and start rubbing the outsoles of the shoes.
- With warm water wash the shoes and use a clean ironed towel to dry the shoes. After washing, put the shoes on a ration or use newspaper or a shoe tree as they dry.
- Once the shoes are dry, put the insoles and laces back in and store them in a cool, dry place.
Final Words
In conclusion, proper maintenance of your basketball shoes is very important in order to see them last as long as possible. Do not use gel, hairspray and hand sanitizers as these substances will wear out the shoes after sometime. Likewise in the same context it is discouraged to use a wet towel or sweat wipe your shoes. Use a traction mat or Grip Spritz spray to increase traction. Taking these few tips will help you to maintain the wear out of your basketball shoes ad also give the best performance on the basketball floor.
