Riding alongside Jalen Brunson’s ascension as one of the greatest NBA Playoff performers ever is his personal stash of Nike Kobe footwear. Throughout his tenure with the New York Knicks, Brunson has been wearing Mambas exclusively and has been the top priority for the Kobe Brand’s Player Exclusive program, receiving several one-of-one colorways to wear throughout the season.
During the Round 1 series between the New York Knicks and Detroit Pistons, Jalen Brunson debuted yet another PE of the Nike Kobe 5. This multi-colored affair mixes a wide variety of primary hues including orange, blue, green, yellow, red, and black. However, there’s a deeper backstory behind this seemingly random mix of shades.
Brunson recently unveiled a closer look at the shoes on his Instagram, dubbing the shoes the Kobe 5 “WTR”. Including a photo of himself on the court with his father Rick, we can deduce that “WTR” is an acronym for “What The Rick”, with the colors possibly linking to the teams the elder Brunson played for during his own NBA career. The blue/orange is connected to the Knicks, the green/yellow to the Seattle Sonics, and so on.
With Brunson’s stardom continuing to rise not just in New York but globally (he has the fifth best-selling jersey in the league), we’re left to wonder if Nike is considering a signature shoe line for the clutch hooper. For now, he’s content being the head honcho of Kobe footwear in the NBA.
In other Kobe news, the Kobe 5 “Caitlin Clark” PE is set to launch later this year.
