Kobe Bryant shed the high tops and went low in the Nike Zoom Kobe IV. In this shoe, Kobe proved the haters wrong and won his first championship without Shaq by defeating the Orlando Magic in 5 games. Our newest member, Darryl goes in and brings out his Kobe IVs. While showing off the collection, he breaks down the history and the breakthrough of the shoe.
Today, in the fourth episode of Mamba Monday, I took a look at the Zoom Kobe IV (4) signature series. This model was a very revolutionary model; not just for the Zoom Kobe series and the Kobe signature line in its entirety, but for basketball shoes in general. Nike Zoom Kobe IV (4) shook up the unwritten laws of shoe performance and took the world by storm. For the first time in the Zoom Kobe series, Kobe Bryant signature shoe was a low top, which is unheard of in basketball for the most part. I’m sure you all remember going sneaker shopping with your parents and them saying “you better pick a high top or you’ll break your ankle.”
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On his journey to improve and tune his game, Kobe asked for the lowest and lightest basketball sneaker ever. Nike responded to his request with the Nike Zoom Kobe IV (4), the lightest basketball shoe at the time and the first low top signature shoe for a major Nike basketball athlete.
Why a low-top you ask? Kobe’s logic for a low top was simple. Dating back to his roots in Italy, he’s always been a fan of soccer. Soccer players wear low top boots and play/run a longer distance of a field than basketball players. On top of the running, they do more cutting, kicking, and overall use of their feet so why can’t basketball players? Share your Kobe kicks with us (use #MambaMonday on Twitter and Instagram) and get featured in our weekly editions of Mamba Monday. As you may have guessed, next week will feature the Nike Zoom Kobe V.
