In September, Vanessa Bryant introduced the Nike Mamba Program, which consists of six NCAA basketball programs that will receive exclusive colorways of Kobe Bryant’s Protro series of footwear. Among the schools included in the program are UConn, LSU, Oregon, USC, Kentucky, and the Duke Women’s Basketball team.
The Duke Women’s Basketball team recently showcased two Nike Kobe 8 Protros as part of the program. These shoes feature the team’s signature color scheme, with one pair representing the home colors and the other pair representing the away colors. The home colorway flips the placement of the blue and white hues from the away colorway, with the upper and midsole in a clean white color and vibrant blue accents on the swooshes, inner lining, and heel logos.
Both pairs of the Duke-inspired Kobe 8 Protros feature a mesh upper, Lunarlon-infused midsole, and jet-black accents on the tread and heel clip. The crisp white Kobe sheath logo and profile swoosh complete the design.
It seems that Nike and Vanessa have chosen the Kobe 8 as the first Protro silhouette to be released to the six NCAA programs. It will be interesting to see if more of Bryant’s beloved designs will be included in the program in the future.
If you’re interested in other basketball footwear, the adidas AE1 will debut in the “With Love” colorway on December 16th.