eBay has removed an unauthorized pair of the “Mambacita” Nike Kobe 6 Protro sneakers after Vanessa Bryant called out Nike for releasing the tribute shoes without her consent.
On Friday (June 4), the Twitter account for eBay Sneakers tweeted, “Thanks for the concern everyone. The listing has been removed. We appreciate the help.” According to Complex, listings for the sneakers on GOAT and Flight Club have also been removed, however, they are still being sold on StockX.
On Wednesday (June 2), Bryant took to social media to call out Nike after she got wind that someone had purchased a pair of the shoes she designed in recognition of her late husband and daughter.
“This is a shoe I worked on in honor of my daughter, Gianna,” Bryant wrote. “It was going to be called the MAMBACITA shoe as an exclusive black and white colorway on her daddy’s shoes. I picked the colors in honor of her uniform, the number 2 she wore just like her uniform, the inside pattern, Kobe and Gigi on the back in gold instead of Kobe’s signature, the inside shoe details (butterfly, wings, halo), etc.”
She added that she did not approve the sale of the “Mambacita” shoes and she questioned how someone was able to purchase them before she and her daughters received a pair.
“The MAMBACITA shoes are NOT approved for sale. I wanted it to be sold to honor my daughter with ALL of the proceeds benefitting our @mambamambacitasports foundation, but I did not re-sign the Nike contract to sell these shoes,” she wrote. “The MAMBACITA shoes were not approved to be made in the first place. Nike has NOT sent any of these pairs to me and my girls.”
Back in April, Bryant chose not to renew her husband’s contract with the sneaker company. She and her husband’s estate were reportedly “frustrated” with how Nike limited the availability of the NBA star’s products during his retirement and after his death.
Check out the tweet from eBay Sneakers below.