- Vanessa Bryant said on Instagram that she designed a Nike shoe to honor her late husband and daughter.
- The sneaker was never released, but Bryant said an Instagram user somehow obtained a pair.
- In January 2020, Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, died in a helicopter accident.
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Vanessa Bryant called out Nike after she said an Instagram user posted a photo of an unreleased shoe she designed to honor her late daughter, Gianna, and her late husband, Kobe Bryant.
In a lengthy statement posted on her Instagram, Vanessa said the shoes "were not approved" for sale and she hoped Nike hadn't sold them.
"I wanted it to be sold to honor my daughter will all of the proceeds benefitting our @mambamambacitasports foundation, but I did not re-sign the Nike contract and decided not to sell the shoes," Vanessa wrote in her post on Wednesday evening, also tagging Nike. Vanessa did not indicate who apparently obtained a pair of the shoes.
Kobe, a five-time NBA championship-winning basketball player with the Los Angeles Lakers, and his daughter Gianna died in a helicopter accident in January 2020.
The athletic brand did not immediately return a request for comment.
Vanessa told ESPN in April that her husband's contract with Nike expired on April 13. She ultimately decided not to re-sign the contract after voicing frustrations that the company limited the supply of Kobe's products after he retired, and later when he died, according to her ESPN interview.
In Wednesday's emotional post, Vanessa said that every aspect of the shoes honored a part of her daughter's life - from the color to the inside pattern.
"It was going to be called the MAMBACITA shoe as an exclusive black and white colorway on her daddy's shoes," she wrote in the post. "Mambacita" was a nickname given to Gianna as a nod to her father's self-given nickname, "the Black Mamba."
She said the shoes also honored Gianna's basketball uniform, with her jersey number "2." The names "Kobe" and "Gigi" were placed on the heels of the shoe, along with small details like a butterfly, a halo, and wings, the Instagram post showed.
Not only were the shoes not for sale, but Vanessa also said the company never sent her nor her daughters a pair. "Nike has NOT sent any of these pairs to me and my girls. I do not know how someone else has their hands on shoes I designed in honor of my daughter, Gigi and we don't. I hope these shoes did not get sold @nike."
In her Instagram story, Vanessa shared a screenshot of a tweet that alleged the shoes were sold "by accident" in the United Kingdom through a retailer called Foot Patrol. The retailer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Many of Vanessa's 15 million followers suggested in Instagram comments that the shoes might have been counterfeit, while others criticized the anonymous person who allegedly posted the photo of the unapproved sneakers.
"Disrespect on many levels," one person commented on Instagram. On Twitter, one user wrote, "Vanessa Bryant should not have to fight everyone this hard for basic respect."
-Cepoin (@THIScepoin) June 3, 2021
Vanessa did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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