Kobe Bryant's Nike Kobe 6 "Grinch" is Officially Returning in Protro Form

Arguably the most coveted colorway ever birthed from Kobe Bryant‘s basketball sneaker lineage, the Nike Kobe 6 “Grinch” is confirmed to be returning in Protro form. The emergence of its official imagery arrives a few weeks after Nike’s hoops family dropped the Kobe 5 Protro “Bruce Lee” installments.

For those who had the luxury of seeing Bryant work his wizardry for his incredible 20-year career on the hardwood, there’s a good chance that you’ve already seen these holiday-themed kicks, but let’s dive into the aspects of its design anyway for the younger heads. For context, this extra vibrant offering was the pair that Kobe rocked on Christmas Day back in 2010 when the Lakers battled it out against the then-stacked Miami Heat squad with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and company.

Its palette draws from one of the most classic Dr. Seuss tales known to-date, and translates the fictional antagonist’s furry body to a tee. The court-ready sneakers are predominantly hued in green, and feature “Green Apple” shades that submerge the scaly uppers, heel molds, sock liners and majority of the midsoles. Accompanying this are “Volt” notes which douse the throat and lower rear’s Zoom bag, as well as Santa Claus outfit-inspired red hits that peak out through Kobe’s signature on the heel and atop the Mamba tongue insignias.

Moreover, the Swoosh team chose to modify these court classics with upgrades to its last and cushioning unut. The former is seen through the silhouette’s sleeker shape, while the latter integrates a forefoot Zoom Air Turbo bag, plusher heel cushioning and increased surface area of the traction pattern for better ground contact.

Like the originals, the insoles here will also split “I Want A Shoe That Molds to My Foot” wording between each foot, and will come packaged with a duo of laces to choose from.

Nike has confirmed that the pair will be dropping across North America on December 24.

Interested in more Nike news? The Nike Adapt Auto Max “Jetstream” is scheduled to launch on December 26.