Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant. AP FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — NBA superstar Kobe Bryant said he took inspiration from Filipino boxing champion Manny Pacquiao in creating Nike Zoom Kobe 9, his latest shoe design which was unveiled this week.
Bryant, who gave low-cut shoes a whole new life all over the world these past few years, decided to take a step in a different direction this year after watching Pacquiao train for a fight.
“I was with Pacquiao, watching him train and preparing for a fight, and I’m looking at his boot and I’m saying ‘what if there’s something there?’ And everything just kinda matched up,” said Bryant in the press launch video posted on Bleacher Report.
His previous designs, from Zoom Kobe 4 to 8, were inspired by football, which Kobe said in the same interview had a “great influence in my life.”
Kobe 9, still boasts of lightweight technology, features a knit collar for additional support, while armed with three key technologies: Nike Flynit, Flywire and Lunarlon, according to Nike’s website.
The first colorway is dubbed “Masterpiece,” but a wide array of colorways is expected to drop in the future. Kobe 9 officially goes on sale on February.
The Los Angeles Lakers’ star guard, though, hasn’t had a chance to flaunt his newest sneakers this season since he tore his Achilles tendon earlier this year.