Kobe Bryant sneakers have oscillated between low cut and high cut in recent years. The Mamba’s passion for soccer and desire for quick and unrestricted movements has resulted in Kobe’s basketball shoes looking more minimalistic than ever. The design comes from Eric Avar, who has worked on each Kobe signature sneaker. According to Nike, the XI is said to be "high performance, lightweight, responsive and sophisticated design." Like previous Kobe sneakers from Nike, the Kobe 11’s colorways are inspired by and showcase moments from Kobe’s career. The Achilles Heel Kobe 11 features design cues that tie to the Greek epic hero Achilles, as well as Kobe’s career. On the heel of this red and black colorway of the Kobe 11 you’ll find graphics of Achilles on the left and four stitch marks that represent the four feet of thread used in Kobe’s Achilles surgery in 2013. The Kobe 11 upper consists of FlyKnit and features a reflective Swoosh design. The Kobe logo is flaunted in gold on the tongue while the transparent outsole shows off the full-length Zoom Air cushioning. The Nike Kobe 11 Low Achilles Heel was the launch colorway of the final signature model during Kobe Bryant’s playing career for the Los Angeles Lakers.