Your Guide To Basketball Shoe Deals(Never Pay Full Retail)

How to Find the Best Basketball Shoe Deals

Hey, we get it, basketball shoes are expensive. Looking at the brand new releases and wondering how you can afford to drop $150+ on a pair of shoes is a pain point.

These shoes may or may not be worth that much to you, however, the shoe companies have a strategy that works.

We are going to circumvent that strategy and find the best deals on the best shoes.

That doesn’t mean we buy shoes at a discount retailer like Walmart or Target. We want you to have the best shoes for performance and shoes made of the best materials.

Follow along and let’s find the best shoe steals and deals!

Let’s Get Started

The first thing we need to look at is how we shop for basketball shoe deals. If you are going out there and looking at brand new shoes that have been released within the last 6 months, you’ve already lost the battle.

Those shoes will be at full retail price. Shoe companies know that when they release a hot new shoe, there will be droves of people lining up to try them or even buy them to collect.

The shoe market is like any other fashion market, even for performance basketball shoes.

What is “hot” or “in style” will be the most expensive. This doesn’t mean they are the best necessarily, but it does mean we want to avoid the “hottest” models out there.

We want to find shoes that perform just as well for less money. That’s why we will look for last year’s model or we’ll find shoes that perform just as well for less.

We have to get past the mentality that the newest thing is the best thing.

Once you have done that it’s time to shop for shoes!

What to Look For

If you’ve read our Ultimate Shoe Buying Guide, then you know what features you are looking for in a shoe. You want the balance of comfort, performance, and support features that best suit your play style.

Once you have determined this part of the equation, we need to look for shoes that will fit into this category.

Here are the shoes you should be looking for:

• Last year’s signature model- This is the shoe your favorite player wears, and as long as it’s not their first year with a shoe, there will be last year’s model with as much as 50% off.
• Non-signature performance shoes- This is what we would call mid-range basketball shoes. These shoes are usually called “Team” models and don’t have an athlete attached to them. They can be very good performers, and they also go on sale more often.
• Smaller brands- Small performance shoe companies will already be competing on price right from the beginning. Companies like Anta or Crossover Culture, start at lower prices than the big companies.

Once you’ve determined what shoe you’ll be looking for, you can start to look for deals on that model. We always recommend looking for deals before buying. Just because you have a shoe picked out at $100, doesn’t mean that you can’t find a 20% off deal that lands you that shoe for $80!

Email Marketing Deals

A lot of online retailers have email marketing where they will send you discount codes just for signing up. If you don’t mind giving them your email address, then this is a great way to get those 20% off codes.

They will also communicate when the shoes are going on clearance. The best deal is getting your 20% off code and using it towards a shoe that is already on clearance.

For example:

The shoe you are looking at, last year’s model starts at $140 retail price. Now that it is 8 months old, it starts to go on clearance before the new model comes out. This shoe is now marked down to $90. This is where you swoop in with a discount code and take home a brand new pair of shoes for $72!

It is that simple if you let go of the notion of having the newest hottest thing.

These shoes are less than a year old and were worn by basketball players the world over. They will be perfect for you at half the price!

Check our where-to shop section and find a retailer you like, then sign up for their email marketing. They are giving away money.

Kid’s Basketball Shoes

Kid’s basketball shoe deals are just as easy to come by as adults. However they start at a much lower price generally, but there are some rules to follow to make sure you get the best deal.

1. Stay away from signature models in kid’s sizes. Kid’s models don’t have the same technology as adult’s shoes, so you ended up paying for the name and brand alone. Not worth it.
2. Find shoes that fit well first. We want to make sure that your child will wear the shoes comfortably and that they fit correctly. No matter how good the deal is, it has to be the right shoe.
3. Set your budget before you buy. If you intend to spend $30 on a pair of kid’s basketball shoes, then stick with that budget. The deals are out there, it just may take a little effort to find them. Don’t cave into your child wanting the hottest new shoe from their favorite player.

Ultimately, kid’s shoes are just like shopping for adult shoes, but you have to keep in mind that fit and comfort are the most important aspects for a child.

They need to have shoes that they will wear and play in reliably, and you need to find some that are wallet-friendly.

We don’t want to skimp too much though, or you may be shopping for new shoes again very soon.

Online vs Retail

When deciding whether you want to purchase your basketball shoes online or at retail, there are some factors to take into consideration.

• Do you know your true size?
• Do you know how the features stack up?
• Is there a price difference?
• Do you need the shoes immediately?
• Do you have a discount code ready to go in your email box?

Answering these questions will help you decide where to buy your shoes. You need to go retail if you have trouble getting shoes in your correct size. You also want to go retail if you need to feel the shoe on foot before buying.

Luckily, retail has just as many deals and they will usually match their own online deals. Find the clearance section at retail and you could find a goldmine of inexpensive, but good-performing basketball shoes.

Where to Shop

Here is a simple list of our favorite retailers.

• Eastbay.com
• FinishLine.com
• Foot Locker
• Amazon

These will get you started with online options, but Finish Line and Foot Locker also have retail locations you can visit.

Amazon has a pretty good selection of shoes, but they don’t offer a lot of the signature models that other retailers do.

The next list of stores are discount retailers that sell overstock and clearance merchandise. These stores are great for finding great shoes for lower prices.

• Marshall’s
• Ross

There may be more in your area, you’ll have to shop around to see.

These discount stores will have last year’s model or even two years ago’s model. This means that you may find basketball shoe deals at 75% off what they were at retail.

Conclusion

We know the attraction to the hottest new releases is strong, we also know that we would go broke trying to keep up with them all.

There is a reason that Nike is a $180 Billion company, they know how to market and sell shoes at full price.

Now you have the ammunition and knowledge to go out there and get those same shoes cheaper.

The best part of deal shopping is there will be money left over to get other essentials like socks or a new ball, maybe even a new insole for your new shoes.

Don’t go out there unaware of basketball shoe deals, and don’t start shopping without doing your homework.

We’ll keep giving you the best tips, and make sure you leave us a comment on where you find your best deals. We’d love to hear from you!