Diadem Pickleball is the latest tennis brand to enter the pickleball market with their recent release of the Icon. They didn’t join the party with a line of cookie cutter paddles like Wilson or Head. Diadem wanted to enter the market with a splash. And they did. Releasing a one of a kind performance paddle with several of their own innovations. More on that further in the review.
I didn’t know what to expect going into this review because Diadem’s Icon paddle is so unique, but I ended up really liking it. I feel confident in saying that I think it’s one of the top tier all-court paddles available.
After drilling and playing over 30 games with Diadem’s new Icon paddle, and even playing a tournament with it, I’m excited to share my review.
Performance Summary
The highlight of the Icon was its controlled power and surprisingly soft feel for a thin molded paddle. What I mean by controlled power is that you could generate good ball speed but the ball didn’t jump off the face making it hard to control. The ball would stay on the face a little longer than traditional power paddles which gave you more precision for ball placement.
The Icon has a solid feel at impact, but when you compare it to other molded paddles from Gearbox and Prokennex, it feels and plays softer which translated well to distance control. I was quickly hitting good drops with it though it took me a little longer to control it at the net when I was playing against high pressure dinkers.
It’s hybrid shape, controlled power, and surprisingly good touch made this a great all-court paddle. You’ll start to see this paddle at tournaments more often.
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Quick Stats
| Technical Specifications | |
|---|---|
|
Weight (Lite) |
7.7 oz |
|
Weight (Mid) |
8.0 oz |
|
Length x Width |
16″ x 7.6″ |
|
Thickness |
.45 (12mm) |
|
Handle Length |
5.5″ |
|
Handle Circumference |
4 1/8″ |
The Core and Paddle Design
The Icon has a thin honeycomb polymer core with a high grade carbon fiber that is molded around the polymer core. One unique innovation to its core are its smaller honeycomb cells. It uses smaller honeycomb cells to make the paddle more dense and durable. They were the first brand to introduce this technology though many brands have copied them since.
Its total thickness is 12mm which is very thin and part of the reason it can generate more power. The high grade carbon fiber helps enlarge the sweet spot and gives the paddle a consistent speed off any area of the sweet spot.
The sweet spot is a decent size, but it’s not the most forgiving paddle out there. When you have a thinner core, one of the things you sacrifice is a huge sweet spot.
However, I recently reviewed the Selkirk Invikta Vanguard Power which also has a 12mm thickness, and I’d say the Icon has a larger sweet spot than it.
The molded nature of the paddle is what allows Diadem to create the edgeless design. It looks really slick without the edge guard. Plus, I’m a fan of the Miami Vice and Black graphic designs so the sharp graphics combined with the slick edgeless look gives it great style points.
Aside from style points, the edgeless design and thinner core made the paddle feel quicker in your hands and easier to maneuver. The paddle was also a little head light too, so that contributed to its maneuverability. It weighed about 8oz, but felt lighter because it was head light. This is in reference to the mid weight option I played with for the review, so I don’t know if the lite weight option has that same balance.
Attacking
I would categorize the Icon as a power paddle. It wasn’t a 10/10 power, but it was enough to put extra pressure on your opponents when you drove the ball or was given a high ball while at the net. I would describe its power as controlled power. Meaning, you could generate good ball speed with it but the ball didn’t jump off the face making it hard to control. The ball stayed on the face a little longer than traditional power paddles which gave you more precision for ball placement.
Plus, it’s unique facing material did its job well to help produce spin, making the power of the paddle more efficient. Let’s talk about the Icon’s unique facing layer. It’s a two component polyurethane coating (whatever that means ha). It is smooth and feels soft to the touch, which seemed really odd for a pickleball paddle. The idea is that it adds spin to the ball through adhesion rather than texture. It worked pretty well. I could add the topspin I wanted when I drove the ball and I could roll the ball over the net easily. The best part was that it seemed to grab the ball better than textured paddles when I was dinking.
The paddle felt very stable and didn’t wobble much with off center hits. Its stability and power was great for countering speed ups too. It gave me a little extra speed on my counters and mishits could be powered through to still be a good ball.
The longer handle of the paddle was nice for two handed backhand shots and giving the paddle a little extra whip and maneuverability. Handles that are 5.25″ or longer seem to be the preferred length for more advanced players. But, of course, there are pro players like Tyler Loong who play with a really short handled paddle, but he is one of the exceptions.
Soft Game and Defense
The Icon has a softer feeling compared to other similar molded paddles from Gearbox and Prokennex. But, it still feels harder at impact compared to thicker polymer core paddles. It was just soft enough (and doesn’t jump off the face like other power paddles) to give you good control from the baseline and midcourt. It didn’t take me long to adjust and consistently hit those well. Dinking and blocks came naturally as well, but when I played against high-pressure dinkers I had a harder time controlling my defensive lift dinks. I tended to pop those up more than normal.
The Icon felt forgiving with shots from the midcourt and baseline, but with difficult finesse shots like dink volleys, it didn’t feel as forgiving. If I was off center with a dink volley it often wasn’t enough to get it over the net. Dink volleys were the only scenario where I felt the paddle wasn’t as forgiving. Everywhere else, I didn’t have an issue with that.
Because of the Icon’s good stability and extra power, it was a great paddle for defending drives. Defending drives is usually one of the weaker parts of my game, but the Icon made it so much easier to punch drives back at the feet of my opponents. Often turning their drives against them or at least neutralizing any advantage they may have otherwise gained on me when I have other paddles in my hand.
I was impressed with the amount of control I had with the Icon. I felt connected to it and had great distance control. However, difficult finesse shots like a dink volley or absorbing pace for a lift dink were a little more challenging with it.
Other Player Comments
Who Would Like This Paddle?
The Diadem Icon sets a new standard for molded paddles. It gives you that harder molded paddle feeling but with an extra sense of touch that no other molded paddle has achieved. It’s a great all-court paddle for players who need a little extra power to attack and defend drives but can be used to beat your opponents with precision and strategy too. I usually don’t recommend power paddles to players in the 3.0 to 3.5 range, but think this could be one that is liked by players in that range along with more advanced players looking for a power boost.
The harder feeling of this paddle is not for everyone. It seemed about half of the people I shared this paddle with liked the harder feeling and the other half didn’t. It’s a preference thing. Additionally, although it has a decent sized sweet spot, there are more forgiving power paddles like Gamma’s Typhoon if you are a lower level player that is concerned about that. If you’re a more advanced player in the 4.0+ range then you’ll enjoy the the shape, longer handle, and maneuverability of the Icon over more forgiving power paddles.
Braydon competes at the 4.5 level and plays in 5-10 tournaments a year. He plays/drills 3 to 4 times a week and would play more if time allowed it.
