More than two years after Kobe Bryant’s passing, his legacy, on and off the court, continues to resonate. And while news circulated around the internet of a rumoured final Kobe sneaker by way of a Kobe 6 Protro “Mamba Forever” last year, we never saw the shoe as business deals between the Bryant Estate and Nike boiled down behind the scenes. With the thought that they’d never release again, sneakerheads saw the sign and began hoarding Kobe’s best shoes. Prices soon reflected their scarcity and they slowly became unobtainable.
Wrapped in a snakeskin pattern, the Kobe 6 was unbelievably light, low, and responsive. Nike debuted many of its subsequent technologies in the shoes before trickling it down to other models. As a sneaker, it was loved by the Mamba, and now it’s taking its turn to honour Gigi Bryant in the form of a special edition colourway dubbed the “Mambacita Sweet 16”.
In the shoe, Nike plays tribute for both father and daughter, swapping out the classic Lakers purple and gold colourway for a black/white/gold colour that reflects the themes of Kobe’s Mamba Sports Academy. A post-retirement foundation that Kobe dedicated to teaching and encouraging youth through the game of basketball. If you were lucky enough to watch any of his tutorial videos before his passing you know just how awesome this foundation was going to be, and this partnership will help carry the legacy.
The sneaker places Gigi Bryant’s #2 jersey in gold at the heel, alongside Kobe’s name on the left and Gigi’s on the right. Finally, the Mamba Sports Academy logo finished the heel, and the famous snakeskin pattern extends into the inner lining in true Kobe fashion.
Alot of people have been asking me if the latest Kobe shoes (mambacita) has a local release. I'm talking about a possible Titan or maybe Nike PH raffle or RSVP. It was just fresh in my memory that a certain Kobe 6 white blue with SKU
CW2190-102 was in NikePH’s warehouse and was to drop, however was halted because of Vanessa Bryants dispute with Nike. Aside from that colorway there are two more which might include the Think Pink colorway and the Mambacita. All of them where made in generally acceptable quantities. Maybe around 800 to 1,000 per pair. By definition its GR but we all know how Kobe's fly in the resell market like pancakes.
Word is from chinese resellers and some insiders that only 5 to 10 percent of the mambacita colorway was released. The bulk will be released on a future date and this was part of the agreement Vanessa and Nike signed to throw off resellers which is a bad idea.
Missing out on popular shoes has never been some new phenomenon. When the latest Jordans, Kobes, Iversons, or whatever dropped, it was kind of known that you had to act quickly or else feel left out as all your friends got to wear them. Yes, it was frustrating, but the process felt at least somewhat fair.
Nike released far too few shoes, played favorites with who had a chance at buying said shoes, and the only people who walked away any kind of pleased were the secondary sellers who profited off the death of a father and his teenage daughter. Solid work all around, Nike.
The power dynamic seems out of whack as, rather than the market dictating what is cool, retailers pump money into hype systems that force people to buy shoes they might not even like or, hilariously, sometimes can’t even wear because the only sizes available have no shot at fitting.
This practice has become so commonplace that in many ways, shoe culture as we once knew it has died off, and countless would-be consumers have grown apathetic enough to not even try for this latest release.
