Kobe’s Widow Vanessa Bryant is Very Angry at Nike for Doing This to Her Daughter’s Sneakers

Vanessa Bryant, the widow of late basketball legend Kobe Bryant, is alleging that athletic apparel and shoe company Nike has leaked unauthorized Mambacita shoes.

Bryant is asking Nike to explain why the exclusive Mambacita sneakers she had worked on to honor her also late daughter were released without her permission.

Kobe’s wife took to Instagram this week to explain her anger, stating that the black and white sneakers, with the names “Kobe” and “Gigi” engraved on them, were released when neither she nor her other daughters had received pairs.

Gianna Bryant, whose nicknames were “Mambacita” and “Gigi” had died in the helicopter crash that also killed her father, Kobe, in January of 2020.

Bryant said she was working on a deal with Nike to sell the shoes but the partnership had been cancelled when she didn’t re-sign her husband’s contract with the sneaker giant.

The Mambacita shoes were not approved to be made in the first place, Bryant said on her Instagram account. “I do not know how someone else has their hands on shoes I designed in honor of my daughter,” she explained.

Bryant posted a picture of someone holding the shoe and wrote, “In the 2nd photo, it appears someone already has Gigi’s MAMBACITA shoe in their possession. If someone can share how they have these shoes in their possession, that would be great because my daughters and I don’t have any of Gigi’s MAMBACITA shoes.”

Disclaimer: We have no position in any of the companies mentioned and have not been compensated for this article.