Kobe Bryant's latest Nike shoe design has gone with a snake theme to match his black mamba nickname. The Nike Kobe 8 System is the eighth shoe that has been designed for Kobe under the Nike umbrella and comes out today with a black and sulfur colorway. (link)

The shoe, made with an engineered mesh, comes in at 9.6 ounces. The holiday colorway, which Kobe will wear with the Lakers' all white Christmas Day uniforms, takes its inspiration from a rhinoceros viper with bright red, yellow, and blue-green diamond scales. (link)

Nike compares the colorful snakeskin pattern to a Christmas garland - but don't get too close! Perhaps Kobe's most notorious Christmas Day shoe was the Grinch green colorway he's been wearing these past two years. This special colorway will hit stores on December 26th.

Outside of the lightweight engineered mesh, the shoe features a Lunarlon midsole for cushioning which is supposed to be soft but responsive. The sole features tactile traction, which gives great grip on the hardwood but not the best in an outdoor setting.