THE end of a sneaker era.
As the partnership between the Kobe Bryant estate and Nike came to an end after both parties could not come to terms, the global athletic brand is no longer licensed to release one of its most well-known signature sneaker labels.
Shocking news for sneakerheads everywhere, yes. But it may have also ignited an even greater appreciation for their prized Kobe pairs.
Kiefer Ravena, a big fan of the late NBA legend, shared a photo of his favorite Kobes on his Instagram account, the day after the news was announced.
What the NLEX star considers his 'holy grail' is a signed pair of the Kobe 8 'Mambacurial', with its distinctive electric green-pink flash colorway.
The pair was first released back in June 7, 2013. It was inspired by football legend Cristiano Ronaldo's cleats, the Mercurial Vapor IX.
Before it was even available, Ravena was already itching to cop the pair.
"Back when it was released, I really wanted to get a pair kasi nga Kobe tapos collab pa with Ronaldo's Mercurials," he told SPIN Life.
During one of the late legend's visits here, Ravena got an opportunity to have it autographed by Bryant himself.
"We were able to talk for a bit, then he signed my sneakers," he continued.
The Lakers star scribbled his signature on both sneakers, writing over the Swoosh. He even wrote a short mantra for Ravena that said: "Be Epic!"
Ravena also had another precious memento signed: an old photo, dating back to Kobe's first visit to the Philippines in 1998, when the soon-to-be-legend embraced a very young Kiefer.
The Kobe 8s are now safely stored in his house, rarely touched, until today, when he posted a photo of them, captioning it: "GRAILS."
"I never wore them again, and I consider it to be my most valuable pair of kicks in this household," he said to SPIN Life.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph