In honor of August 24th, aka 8/24, aka "Kobe Day" (a reference to the jersey numbers Kobe Bryant has worn), Nike and Kobe Bryant released five new colorways of the Nike Kobe A.D. dubbed the "Mamba Mentality" Pack, inspired by the "psychology of color," particularly in understanding the correlations between color, attitude and emotion.
For instance here's what the five colorways of the Nike Kobe A.D. "Mamba Mentality Pack" represent. Per Nike,
Kobe AD "Fearless": For Bryant, purple represents overcoming challenges and setting fresh goals.
Kobe AD "Passion": Red is acknowledged as a symbol of passion.
Kobe AD "Optimism": Yellow and positivity go hand in hand, or as some say, “amongst the clouds there is always the sun.”
Kobe AD "Detached": For Bryant, grey represents calm neutrality.
Kobe AD "Honesty": For many, the color blue relays dependability and trust. Bryant equates those traits with honesty.
In addition to the colorful collection of Kobe's kicks, the Black Mamba is also using "Kobe Day" to challenge some of the biggest names in their respective crafts. For instance, Kobe sent out a tweet to new Cleveland Cavaliers point guard, Isaiah Thomas, challenging him to go out and make All-NBA first team in the upcoming season.
Kobe continued the "Mamba Mentality" on instagram by issuing challenges to Kendrick Lamar, DeMar DeRozan, Richard Sherman and Allyson Felix. In a series of posts, using keywords that inspired his Nike Kobe A.D. "Mamba Mentality" Pack, Kobe issued the following challenges.
"@demar_derozan I challenge you to rekindle a lost friendship from your youth in Compton#mambamentality"
"@kendricklamar I challenge your record label to revolutionize the music program at Centennial High School #mambamentality"
"@RSherman25 I challenge you to break the Seahawks single season interception record #mambamentality"
"@AF85 I challenge you to coach the sprinters for the upcoming Special Olympics #mambamentality"
It's clear that Kobe wants his "Mamba Mentality" to live on even in his retirement, regardless of what profession people are involved in.
You can check out Kobe's individual challenges below.