Apparently the Black Mamba’s shoes move just as fast he does, even when he’s not wearing them. A special-edition Air Force 1 iD shoe, created to commemorate the retiring of Kobe Bryant’s Lakers jerseys, dropped at Nike.com Monday evening — around the time the Lakers hit the hardwood for their game against the Golden State Warriors — and was sold out well before the end of regulation.
According to a Nike representative, the entire run of Kobe Bryant Black Mamba Air Force 1 Premium Low iD sneakers was purchased in less than an hour, and there are no plans to make more.
Lucky sneakerheads who were on their point-and-click game Monday night scored a pair of AF 1s with a black, snake-skin-textured upper, a “drop shadow” version of the Nike swoosh logo edged in yellow, the numbers of Bryant’s retired Lakers jerseys on the heel tabs (8 on the left shoe, 24 on the right) and eight tone-on-tone stars on the tongue of each shoe (for a total of 16 — a reference to the number of NBA titles the Lakers franchise has won).
For Bryant fans who lacked the mamba-like dexterity to nab a pair of the custom kicks, Nike’s number-retirement celebration pack also included a range of $30 black T-shirts with yellow pops of color, some depicting Bryant holding an NBA trophy, others with images of his jersey retirement banner. Those are currently available at select Los Angeles-area retailers and are currently listed as “coming soon” at Nike.com.
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