WWE NXT Level Up Review - July 12, 2024

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Malik Blade def. Cutler James

James continues to show signs of development, but as I've said several times before, the stupid name will do him no favors. He needs to do more to come off less generic, too. Otherwise, he's been solid in the ring so far and he had a nice little match with Blade here. It was slightly shorter than your average Level Up match, but they did what they could to make the most of the time they were given.

Tatum Paxley def. Layla Diggs

I still think it's a shame that NXT has done nothing to capitalize on the momentum Paxley generated for herself earlier this year in the storyline with Lyra Valkyria and her strong showing in that NXT Women's Championship Triple Threat at Spring Breakin' (other than that one-off opportunity at the TNA Knockouts World Championship against Jordynne Grace at TNA's Against All Odds event). This was a basic bout, but at least it gave Paxley a win. Much like James, Digg is another alum from that WWE: Next Gen show that aired a few months ago.

Hank Walker and Tank Ledger def. Dion Lennox and Uriah Connors

Hank and Tank got promo time during the usual backstage interview slot after the opener, but it was cool that we got to hear from Lennox and Connors as well after Paxley vs. Diggs. I hope that becomes permanent going forward because it gives more people a chance to hone their skills on the mic. Hank and Tank have turned into a good team, but this wasn't an overly interesting or exciting outing. It was just sort of there. Will the miscommunication between Connors and Lennox lead to them facing off soon?

Overall Show

The episode started off well enough with Blade vs. James in the opener, but there was a noticeable drop off in quality in the subsequent matches. Paxley vs. Diggs was fine because it was clearly intended to be a showcase for Paxley (not sure why it lasted a little longer than Blade vs. James), but the main event should've been better as it was mediocre at best. It was pretty much all lower-level talent this week, which is understandable as they look to gain more experience on NXT's developmental show.

SEE MORE: NXT Level Up Reviews