Minnesota, printed on the upper

Anthony Edwards did not grow up in Minnesota, but the state has become the backdrop for his career, and the adidas line has been happy to say so. The AE3’s ‘Snow Camo’ takes the most obvious thing about a Minneapolis winter – the colour of everything for four months – and turns it into a print. It is a simple idea, executed in greys and off-whites that keep it wearable rather than gimmicky.

Three models in, the line has settled

The AE1 arrived loud and a little heavy, the AE2 trimmed it down, and the AE3 is the point where the shape has stopped moving. What has stayed consistent is the way adidas has treated the line as a signature shoe rather than a team shoe with a logo on it: the proportions are specific, the tooling is specific, and the colour stories come from Edwards rather than from a general seasonal palette. ‘Snow Camo’ fits that pattern.

How it plays

The AE3 is built for a player who attacks – it is a guard-forward shoe with more structure than a pure speed model, and it holds up if you are heavier or play through contact. Two practical notes:

• Traction is the strong point. The outsole pattern is aggressive and clears dust reasonably well on an indoor floor.
• Fit runs true. If you wore the AE2 comfortably, take the same size.

Wearing it off the court

Grey-on-grey is the easiest thing in this lineup to actually wear, which is worth saying because most signature basketball shoes are not. It works with dark denim, with black cargos, and with the adidas apparel that was designed to sit next to it. If you want one pair from the AE3 run rather than a rotation, this is the one that does both jobs.