As
a sneakerhead I have never been a fan of Kobe Bryant's series of Nike
Shoes. Have no fear though sneaker powerhouse Packer Shoes saves the
day once again teaming up with Adidas for the retro release of the
Adidas Crazy 97 “Slam Dunk Contest”. Of all the shoes Kobe has
came out with over the years his best shoe is actually an Adidas
shoe. As you can see the base of the shoe is purple. As for the rest
of the shoe it is done up in yellow, black and white accents which
matches very well with the Lakers uniforms and warm up apparel.
The
shoe along with being very stylish also holds historical value as
Kobe Bryant won the 1997 dunk contest wearing those sneakers. So
these sneakers were the ushering in of the NBA's next great star. If
I'm a Laker fan who also happens to be a sneaker lover then this
would be a top priority as far as sneaker purchases go.
KobeBryant as of the year 2013 is one of the greatest players in LA
Lakers and NBA history but in 1996 he was just an 18 year old kid out
of high school trying to find his way in the league. Drafted 13th
overall by the Charlotte Hornets and then traded to the Lakers, Kobe
Bryant was at that time one of only
5 players to make the
jump from high school to the NBA (Moses Malone, Kevin Garnett, Darryl
Dawkinsand
Bill Willoughby).
The
unique thing about that though is that Kobe was really the first
guard or non big man to make that jump from high school to the NBA.
Few
Players love the game like Kobe “I
always tried to hold a basketball, watch basketball, think about
basketball, People told me to get away from basketball, but I can't.
It's in my blood” Bryant said. As a guard who comes from high
school to the NBA you need to have that passion for your craft. His
father Joe “Jellybean” Bryant said it best when speaking about
Kobe's transition "People say he's not 6-10 or 7 feet. I'm
saying, `Now wait a minute. Sure, he's not 7 feet, but he's a smart
player and he understands the game.' Nobody really ever said that,
and that upset me a little because, to be a guard, you really have to
understand the game”.
When
speaking about Kobe then Lakers head coach Del Harris said the
following "It's not just (his athleticism), I guess you would
say it's the athleticism combined with so many skills. You get so
many athletes who excite you with potential, but they don't have the
ball handling or shooting skills. And here's a guy that actually has
got all these things. It's just that it's in this young body.
He
was dead on about the 18 year old kid from Lower Merion high school
and when he put all of those things together he would go onto score
31,000 points and still counting, win 5 championships and become one
of the most decorated careers in NBA history.
Although
Bryant's rookie year of 1996-97 might have
been limited he put on a show at the 1996 all-star game in Cleveland
winning the dunk contest . Announcers
drooled over his athleticism, players respected his dedication and
fans marveled at his highlight tapes.Kobe Bryant was just scratching
the surface of what he would become 17 seasons later.
