Kobe Bryant’s widow, Vanessa Bryant, has designed a pair of new Nike sneakers called the Protro 8, designs of which the footwear company first released designs on Thursday.
The sneakers are set to go on sale on August 23, marking the late Los Angeles Lakers star’s 45th birthday.
Vanessa posted an Instagram clip of a silhouette of the designer sneakers on Wednesday.
She captioned the clip: “Kobe 8 ‘Halo’ 8.23.23. This will be one of many Kobe 8 ‘Halo’ styles to come.”
Vanessa, the mother of daughters Natalia, 20, the late Gigi, 13, Bianka, 6, and Capri, 4, and the late NBA icon, “thought of the Halo shoe concept and brought it to market to each year to honor Kobe’s birthday,” the shoe company said.
Details: Kobe Bryant’s widow, Vanessa Bryant, has designed a pair of new Nike sneakers called the Protro 8, designs of which the footwear company first released designs on Thursday. Recorded in LA in December 2019, just a month before Kobe’s death in a helicopter crash
The sneakers are set to go on sale on August 23, marking the late Los Angeles Lakers star’s 45th birthday
The sneakers are a modern take on the eighth shoe Kobe released under its brand name in 2012; and the second release from the late legend’s lineage since the release of the Kobe 4 Protro Mamabacitas in May.
The company said its Halo concept will be “an annual release honoring and celebrating this special date” of Kobe’s birthday.
Nike said that on the latest model, designers have “replaced the Lunarlon midsole with Nike React foam, which provides better comfort and responsiveness and creates an overall more durable design.”
“Also updated are the herringbone traction pattern and embroidery of the Swoosh on the upper and the Mamba logo on the tongue.”
After the late Los Angeles Lakers star’s contract with Nike expired in April 2021, Vanessa announced on Instagram in March 2022 that she had agreed with Nike on a new contract that would allow the company to honor the star Produce shoes for the late Kobe and Gigi Bryant.
“We are delighted to announce that our partnership with Nike continues!” Vanessa said in a post on the social media site. “I’m so proud that my husband’s shoes are still the most worn shoes by players on NBA courts and that his shoes continue to be in such high demand among his fans around the world.”
“With this new partnership, fans will soon have access to Kobe and Gigi Nike merchandise for years to come, and Nike donates 100% of the net proceeds from Gianna’s shoes to our Mamba and Mambacita Sports Foundation (M&MSF) annually.”
Vanessa said she is “grateful” to work with Nike to create “a youth basketball center in Southern California that will share the Mamba mentality with young athletes for generations to come.”
Vanessa posted an Instagram clip of a silhouette of the designer sneakers on Wednesday
Vanessa “imagined and developed the Halo shoe concept and launched it to honor Kobe’s birthday each year,” the footwear company said
The company said its Halo concept will be “an annual release honoring and celebrating this special date” of Kobe’s birthday
Nike said that on the latest model, designers have “replaced the Lunarlon midsole with Nike React foam, which provides better comfort and responsiveness and creates a more durable design overall.”
Nike said it “also updated the herringbone traction pattern and Swoosh embroidery on the upper and the Mamba logo on the tongue.”
Vanessa announced on Instagram in March 2022 that she had agreed to a new deal with Nike that will allow the company to produce shoes honoring the late Kobe and Gigi Bryant
Kobe and Gigi were spotted at an NBA game in Brooklyn in December 2019
Vanessa called the deal “an inspirational moment” for Kobe and Gigi’s fans and said she was “very grateful” to everyone.
Vanessa has previously spoken out publicly on social media about a lack of signature Kobe Bryant shoes following his tragic death.
She said in December 2020 that she reached out to the company after learning that “fans [were] I’m having a hard time getting the Kobe 6 Grinch shoes; and was upset in June 2021 after the company made a Gigi MAMBACITA shoe without her consent.
The family remains resilient after Kobe, 41, and Gigi, 13, died along with seven others in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California on Jan. 26, 2020. The crash also killed pilot Ara Zobayan, 50, and Payton Chester, 13 , Sarah Chester, 46, Alyssa Altobelli, 14, Keri Altobelli, 46, John Altobelli, 56, and Christina Mauser, 38.