Responding to another user’s comment, Vanessa Bryant said Nike told her it produced pairs of the shoes. (Nike has not yet responded to FN’s request for comment.)
“Nike told us that the shoes were made after I saw them posted online but they were never supposed to be sold. In fact, we were discussing releasing them after all but the only way I will agree is if 100% of all of the proceeds goes to @mambamambacitasports so that Kobe and Gianna’s foundation is the only entity that benefits from selling Gigi’s Mambacita shoes,” she responded.
Although how the Nike Kobe 6 Protro “Mambacita” shoes made it into someone’s hand, several Instagram users have made claims that U.K.-based retailer Footpatrol accidentally shipped pairs out to customers who ordered another Nike Kobe style.
FN has reached out to Footpatrol for comment.
Famed collector Qias Omar replied to Vanessa Bryant’s post and said people have reached out trying to sell him pairs.
“Footpatrol in the U.K. accidentally sent these to customers who ordered another colorway of the Kobe 6. They were supposed to receive the Grinch I believe but got these instead,” he wrote. “Footpatrol contacted them after asking for the pairs back but obviously no one gave them back. I got messages by a few people trying to sell me pairs. They are real. Just not supposed to be sold yet I guess.”
In April, Nike revealed that the deal between the brand and the Los Angeles Lakers legend has come to an end. “Kobe Bryant was an important part of Nike’s deep connection to consumers. He pushed us and made everyone around him better. Though our contractual relationship has ended, he remains a deeply loved member of the Nike family,” Nike wrote in a statement emailed to FN.
After, Vanessa Bryant addressed her husband’s now-ended Nike deal on Instagram.
“Kobe’s Nike contract expired on 4/13/21. Kobe and Nike made some of the most beautiful basketball shoes of all time, worn and adored by fans and athletes in all sports across the globe. It seems fitting that more NBA players wear my husband’s product than any other signature shoe. My hope will always be to allow Kobe’s fans to get and wear his products. I will continue to fight for that. Kobe’s products sell out in seconds. That says everything. I was hoping to forge a lifelong partnership with Nike that reflects my husband’s legacy. We will always do everything we can to honor Kobe and Gigi’s legacies. That will never change,” she wrote via Instagram stories.
