Nike Plans To Retro Every Kobe Bryant Signature Sneaker This Year

If you missed out on the Nike Kobe 1 through 10, you're in luck.

Kobe Bryant has been having what is probably the ideal finale season, at least in terms of the respect he’s getting. His on-court play hasn’t been anything to write home about, but he’s exhibited poise as every team pays homage to the legendary Los Angeles Laker, most recently getting a personal video tribute from his former teammate Pau Gasol during a trip to Chicago. Kobe has also been giving out his sneakers left and right to younger players, but now Nike wants to give fans a chance to get in on the Kobe Bryant Farewell Tour™.

Nike’s Kobe sneaker line has been extremely successful for the brand, and to commemorate the shoe’s namesake, they’re going to release a retro of every Nike Kobe sneaker that’s released since the line’s inception. Nike has been listening to fans, because they’re also including the Nike Zoom Huarache 2k4, not part of the signature sneaker line, but widely considered to be his first “unofficial” signature sneaker.

Called the “Fade to Black” collection, each sneaker will be priced at $200. The colors look like they will start off pure white with the Nike Zoom Huarache 2k4 and then will slowly transition to darker colors until the Kobe 11, which will be all black. It’s a great motif. Peep the sneaker list below with (as of now rumored) release dates.

Nike Zoom Huarache 2k4 FTB
Color: White/White-White
Release Date: March 1

Nike Zoom Kobe 1 FTB
Color: Sail/Sail
Release Date: March 19

Nike Zoom Kobe 2 FTB
Color: Light Bone/Light Bone
Release Date: March 19

Nike Zoom Kobe 3 FTB
Color: Matte Silver/Matte Silver
Release Date: March 19

Nike Zoom Kobe 4 FTB
Color: Dust/Dust
Release Date: March 19

Nike Zoom Kobe 5 FTB
Color: Tumbled Grey/Tumbled Grey
Release Date: April 3

Nike Zoom Kobe 6 FTB
Color: River Rock/River Rock
Release Date: April 5

Nike Zoom Kobe 7 FTB
Color: Blue Fox/Blue Fox
Release Date: April 6

Nike Kobe 8 FTB
Color: Dark Raisin/Dark Raison
Release Date: April 8

Nike Kobe 9 Elite FTB
Color: Anthracite/Anthracite
Release Date: April 10

Nike Kobe 10 Elite Low FTB
Color: Dark Obsidian/Dark Obsidian
Release Date: April 11

Nike Kobe 11 Elite Low FTB
Color: Black/Black
Release Date: April 13

Michael Jackson had some sage advice for a young Kobe Bryant

WE all assume that the MJ who had the biggest influence on Kobe Bryant was Michael Jordan. But the Black Mamba revealed that Michael Jackson also helped shape him into the legend he would become.

On “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel”, Kobe revealed that the King of Pop reached out to him when he was still an 18-year-old rookie. Jackson let him know to just be himself (via Real Sports press release):

KOBE BRYANT: “Gold’s Gym in ‘98. Liftin’ weights and I get a phone call and it’s Michael Jackson on the other line. And kinda, ‘What the hell is going on?’ Somebody’s playing a practical joke.

ANDREA KREMER: “Michael Jackson calling you at the age of 18?”

KOBE BRYANT: “Age of 18. He’s a big basketball fan. I was starting to get flack for being an introvert and being so serious all the time about the game. And he wanted to call and give me encouragement and say, ‘Don’t change for them. You have to stay focused. If you wanna be one of the all-time greats you have to study the all-time greats. You have to be obsessive about what you do and how you do it.’ And the summertime, I would just disappear. I’d be studying, I’d be researching, I’d be figuring out a way.”

ANDREA KREMER: “Studying, researching what?”

KOBE BRYANT: “The game. Chicago won another championship. How? Why? How do we get to that level?”

Kobe’s focus has become legendary — almost maniacal — and it’s part of the reason the man will walk away with five championship rings.

Steph Curry, Kobe Bryant, Neymar and Lionel Messi may each have legions of fans, but the superstars are big fans of each other, too. That all-star fandom was particularly evident this week when the group couldn’t stop complimenting each other on TV and social media.

The reason Bryant got a lot of love is obvious. After announcing his retirement on Sunday in a poem reminiscent of Michael Jordan’s famous retirement letter to basketball, athletes from all over thanked him for his contribution to the sport. Messi’s was one of the most high profile, and not only because he put it on Instagram where he has more than 30 million followers from around the world. It was also because he credited Bryant with getting him to love basketball.

Bryant on retirement: ‘There’s so much beauty in the pain of this thing’

Speaking of Messi’s 30 million Instagram followers, Steph Curry had some compliments to dole out to the 28-year-old Argentine about that popularity on Thursday. In a short video, he also offered tickets to a game for Messi and held up an autographed jersey with the number 30 on it.

Curry’s hair looks nice, doesn’t it? Neymar sure thinks so! On Wednesday, he gushed over the Golden State Warriors star’s look and said his current hairstyle is modeled after the 27-year-old’s.

Neymar’s appearance on FIFA Ballon d’Or short list is a big step for soccer

“I hadn’t used that hairstyle since 2009,” Neymar told Brazil’s Globo (via CBS Sports). “Stephen Curry style.”

(Albert Gea/Reuters)

Eh, close enough. Much closer than the nearly 6,000 miles of land and ocean that separates Spain from California. Despite the distance, though, this chumminess between Spanish soccer and West Coast basketball has been going on for years. Need proof? Well then we might as well complete the circle and have Kobe show us.
That’s Neymar in the lower left. And who can forget this ad from 2013?

“I have been following the side for 10 years,” Bryant said this summer when Barcelona traveled to Los Angeles for an exhibition game, revealed during a meeting with the players at the StubHub Center in Los Angeles. “I love watching Messi, [Andres] Iniesta and the rest of the squad.”

Bryant said he hasn’t yet had a chance to watch Barca at their hometown stadium Camp Nou, but says it’s one of his lifelong dreams. Seems worthy of a post-retirement trip, right?

Kyrie Irving still wants his 1-on-1 game with Kobe Bryant

Back in the summer of 2012, Cleveland Cavaliers star Kyrie Irving was on the national select team that scrimmaged against the Team USA Olympic basketball team. Fresh off his rookie season, the opportunity gave Irving a valuable opportunity to be around some of the best players in the world, including one of his childhood idols, Los Angeles Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant.

“I challenged Kobe one-on-one and the video kind of went viral,” Irving said. “From that point on, every time we played since I was a rookie, I was just trying to earn his respect. Guys that have come before me, I never forget their groundwork -- even guys that have come before Kobe that allowed him to leave a legacy on this game that will last forever.”

“Never came up,” Irving said. “I think I would do it now though. He would still go at me and it would be good.”

Irving and Bryant formed a quick bond, and a video of Irving challenging Bryant to a game of one-on-one went viral. In the video, Bryant claimed Irving should call his father and ask if he thought it was a good idea to play Bryant one-on-one for $50,000, while Irving claimed Bryant would have to play defense, which he said Bryant couldn't do. The two then agreed to play one-on-one in the summer of 2013.

The game never happened, though, because Bryant tore his Achilles in April 2013. Still, that hasn't stopped the two from staying in contact and becoming better friends, given their mutual respect and admiration for each other's offensive game and competitiveness, according to ESPN:

Though Irving says the one-on-one game hasn't been rediscussed yet, with Bryant set to retire at the end of this season, Irving wants the matchup NBA fans have been waiting years for:

The ball's in your court, Kobe.

E-commerce, a slam-dunk for Kobe Bryant in China

A video clip of Kobe Bryant trying to learn Chinese internet slang has had hundreds of thousands of hits in the last two months.

The NBA star told Xinhua that he was learning Chinese to understand comments left by customers at his new Taobao store Kobe Incorporated on Alibaba.

Bryant is just one of many overseas celebrities starting online businesses in China. Alibaba, the world's biggest shopping portal, has recruited some 100,000 celebrities to promote products for some of its 10 million vendors across its two main sites, Taobao and TMall.

Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant Gets The Veteran He Needs

Kobe Bryant has always been a tough-minded leader, pushing his teammates to the limit just as he would himself. He has had his fair share of run-ins with teammates in the past, but has also won five championships that prove he is a winner. Now, he finds himself in a difficult situation with a young Los Angeles Lakers‘ roster that has struggled in recent years. They have added some veterans in free agency, but Metta World Peace may be the one who can bridge the gap between Bryant and the rest of the team.

The Lakers may not be championship contenders, but you can expect Bryant to give it his all every game and try to will his team to the playoffs. This includes motivating the younger players, who are still developing and adapting to the professional game. It is easy to say things will go well before the season starts, but if the losses start piling up, things could go bad very quickly.

Adding World Peace to the training camp roster is a good move with an eye on the future. World Peace is no longer the defensive menace that he once was, but he is a hard-worker who has had his share of ups and downs in the league. He has won a championship with Bryant, and could possibly be the veteran presence that the team needs in the locker room.

The younger players will need someone to go to when things are not going well during the season, and World Peace has matured significantly since entering the league. He can help them with the little things to become successful, as well as making sure that tensions do not get out of hand between teammates. He is an intimidating presence who can push teammates but can also be a helping hand as well. If he can make the roster, he could be a valuable member of the team even if his floor contributions are not as great as they once were.

Kobe Bryant Steals High-Five From Draymond Green in "NBA 2K16"

If you're on the fence about getting NBA 2K16, let's just go ahead and sway you in one direction. In addition to witnessing the Chris Bosh videobomb, you can see Kobe Bryant being an asshole (this is a compliment, by the way) to the opposing team.

Just look at how Bryant steps in after Harrison Barnes makes a free throw and steals a high-five away from Draymond Green. 

To recap, the graphics are nice, the gameplay is solid and they got Kobe being Kobe to a T. Meanwhile, over at NBA Live 16, Kevin Love is doing wacky shit like this.