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Tuesday morning Nike revealed Kobe Bryant's latest shoe in the Kobe 11 Muse Pack, the KOBE 11 Tinker Muse designed by Tinker Hatfield. Hatfield is the Nike designer who helped craft many of Michael Jordan's shoes in the Air Jordan line.
Of the shoes the Air Jordan's Hatfield has designed, Kobe had a special affinity for the Jordan III's. Many of the same features Hatfield used for the Jordan III's were incorporated into crafting Kobe Bryant's latest shoe, most notably the Chicago Bulls red color that is used for the Nike swoosh on the side of the shoe. The Kobe Bryant logo on the tongue of the shoe seamlessly replaces the Air Jordan logo. Hatfield and Bryant's signatures are placed on the inside of the tongue.
The shoe mimics most aspects of the Air Jordan IIIs. Other than the back of the shoe which is fitted with a heel counter made to resemble shark skin, the shoe also features the typical Nike symbol on one shoe and four stitches on the back of the other, rather than the Nike Air symbol which was on the back of the original Air Jordan IIIs. Hatfield added the shark skin "as a tribute to Bryant's fearlessness and appreciation for the mercurial creature."
Bryant sounded like he was happy with the way the shoe came together when he shared its debut in a tweet on Tuesday morning:
The greatness of Tinker, MJ and my love of the III all come together, first look here. https://t.co/XJwJc1QefV
— Kobe Bryant (@kobebryant) April 26, 2016
This is an incredible shoe, the grey to black flyknit material covering the black cement of the shoes with the plain white sole fits the color scheme of the Jordan IIIs perfectly. Kobe's appreciation for past greatness mixed with new materials and flavor make this shoe something worth purchasing for any Kobe fans or sneakerheads with a little extra cash.
This is a great shoe but it is not Kobe's best. I don't think he will ever have a shoe that tops the Kobe IX Elites. Those high tops from two years ago are my personal favorite of Kobe's shoes, but this a close second, considering how it pays homage to one of the greatest shoes ever.
The KOBE 11 Tinker Muse shoe is available beginning May 5 and are being retailed at $200.00.
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