After rocking the adidas Forum 2000 for the regular season, Kobe brought out his next signature shoe in The KOBE. The grey colorway and overall design of the shoe was inspired by the rounded Audi TT Roadster. With direction from sneaker designer Peter Moore (who designed the Jordan 1,) Audi design chief officer Derek Jenkins helped sketch the lines to shape the adidas The Kobe sneaker.
The shoe featured extra foam in the collar area for added cushioning. The KOBE provides midsole cushioning and support with injected EVA foam with a Torsion piece in the midsole. A half shell-toe was added to pay homage to the three stripes past with the Superstar sneaker. This Kobe signature was capped off with extra foam in the collar, that also featured a “Frobe” profile shape.
After nominal playoff success with the Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant duo, the Lakers finally broke free with the iconic Kobe lob to Shaq in game 7 of the 2000 Western Conference highlighting their championship winning season (Los Angeles would go on to topple the Pacers in 6.) Bryant would continue rocking the adidas Kobe 1 throughout the 2000-01 season, culminating in their repeat championship against the 76ers. After not liking The Kobe 2, Bryant rocked the Kobe 1 once more for his third straight championship against the New Jersey Nets in 2002.
After Kobe left adidas for Nike, the shoe re-released years later with the new name of the adidas Crazy 1, which is available at StockX, GOAT, Stadium Goods, and Flight Club.
