Bryant estate, Nike to resume partnership, build youth basketball center

After a nearly year-long split, the estate of the late Los Angeles Lakers icon Kobe Bryant reached an agreement to resume its partnership with Nike, Vanessa Bryant announced Thursday.

Bryant added that Nike has agreed to donate all net proceeds from Kobe and Gigi Bryant products to the family's youth sports nonprofit, the Mamba and Mambacita Sports Foundation.

"I am so proud that my husband's shoes are still the most worn by players on NBA courts and that the demand for his shoes (remains) so desired by his fans around the world," she wrote on Instagram. "With this new partnership, fans will soon be able to have access to Kobe and Gigi Nike (products) for years to come."

The first new release from the line will be the Kobe 6 Protro "Mambacita Sweet 16," Nike announced. A release date was not given.

Bryant also announced she and Nike would "work together to establish a youth basketball center in Southern California that will share the Mamba Mentality with youth athletes for generations to come."

The renewed collaboration comes 11 months after Bryant revealed she and her late husband's estate had chosen not to renew its longstanding contract with the apparel giant. The Bryant estate then filed trademark applications for several graphics and phrases, including for the use of the "M" Mamba snake logo for clothing and footwear.

Friction between the estate and Nike reportedly stemmed in part from a lack of availability of Kobe-branded products, both after his retirement from the NBA in 2016 and then following his death at age 41 in a helicopter crash alongside his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, and seven others in January 2020. A lack of shoes in child sizes was also reportedly an issue for Bryant's estate.

Bryant's initial deal with Nike started in 2003 after the 18-time All-Star and five-time champion's partnership with rival shoe brand Adidas ended.