6. adidas The Kobe
2000. 2001. 2002. Three years. Three rings. Three Stripes. There’s nothing like your first time…
At the age of 17, fresh from High School, Kobe Bryant signed a reportedly 6-year, 48 million dollar contract with adidas. May not be as much as Derrick Rose’s whopping $200M deal, but hey, this was back in 1996. The sneaker market was about to hit new heights and adidas risked it all, just like Jerry
West when he requested that legendary trade for the Mamba.
Remembered for it’s crazy design, adidas created The Kobe which was inspired by an Audi sports car. It looked futuristic at the time and perhaps even now. Possibly one of the worst sneakers that attracted creases, but you can’t be mad at a championship. No matter how you feel about them, it got the job done. And for Kobe, he took these to the Playoffs two consecutive years. The following sneaker, The Kobe Two wasn’t a favorite for Bryant, so he switched back to these a lot during those early 2000’s years.
Today, the adidas The Kobe is now regarded as the Crazy 1. It retroed and released a couple years ago, but it didn’t at take long to hit clearance racks. Not the most popular model, but thee were the weapons that got Kobe his first three rings.
