Vanessa Bryant gifts UConn players unreleased Nike Kobe sneakers ahead of March Madness’ Sweet 16 round matchup against San Diego State in a rematch of last year’s Championship game

Vanessa Bryant has gifted UConn players some of Nike’s latest basketball sneakers in tribute to her late husband ahead of the Huskies’ rematch of the last year’s title game against San Diego State in this year’s NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16. 

Players received the unreleased Kobe kicks – ‘Italian Camo’ Protros – on Wednesday, a little less than 24 hours before facing the No. 5 Aztecs in Boston as part of the latest round of March Madness. 

In a video shared by the team on Instagram, the Big East champs are seen casually hanging out before being surprised by Vanessa’s gesture, as they went nuts once they saw the shoeboxes in the room, unwrapping them quickly. 

All of that being said, the sneakers won’t be available to the public until next month, according to Sole Retriever.

‘I just wanna say thank you to Vanessa Bryant and the Bryant family,’ senior guard Hassan Diarra said while holding his brand new pair. ‘We’re gonna show in the NCAA tournament!’ 

UConn players were surprised with Nike’s latest Kobe shoes ahead of their Sweet 16 game

The ‘Italian Camo’ Protros will come out in April and are a tribute to Kobe’s childhood in Italy

The Huskies got the shoes ahead of Thursday’s rematch of last year’s title game vs. San Diego

Vanessa Bryant at a ceremony unveiling a statue for her husband at Cypto.com Arena in Feb.

Kobe was a big fan of both of UConn’s basketball team. Pictured with his late daughter, Gianna

The Huskies’ women’s team once honored Gigi at a game with a custom No. 2 jersey in 2020

The names of the shoes – ‘Italian Camos’ – pay tribute to Kobe’s upbringing in Italy. The Lakers legend lived there from the age of 6 to 13, before he and his family came back to the US to live in Philadelphia, Kobe’s hometown. 

This week, however, isn’t the first time that UConn has received some Kobe footwear, as they were gifted some during last year’s tournament — the custom Huskies Kobe 8 Protros. 

UConn is also a part of the Nike Mamba Program, which started in September of last year. 

Back in the day, when Kobe was still alive, he famously cheered on both the UConn Huskies’ men and women basketball teams. Gianna even went to several games with her dad before tragically passing away in a helicopter crash in 2020.

The Huskies’ women’s team even honored Gigi at a game with a custom No. 2 jersey in January of that year.