I usually write about shoes you pull on under a pair of jeans, so a high basketball shoe is a step outside my lane. I looked at the Nike Kobe 3 Protro “Orca” (IQ5340-001) anyway, partly because it’s the first time this colour has come back since the original dropped in 2008. It released on Saturday 26 September through SNKRS, so it’s out now.
What’s actually on it
Almost everything is black: the leather toe, the collar, the laces. Across the side and the ankle runs a plastic cage with diamond-shaped openings, mesh showing through the gaps. That lattice is what gives the Kobe 3 its face — on the photo it reads more like a shield than a shoe. At the heel sits a big white Swoosh that wraps around the back, and that’s the only light panel on the whole thing. Small yellow hits land on the tongue and heel; Nike calls that shade Varsity Maize. The midsole is dark grey with a band around the rim.
The “Orca” nickname comes from the black-on-white; once you’ve heard it, you can’t unsee the killer whale. Nike itself keeps it at “Black and White”, which is accurate if less fun. No pink to report this time, and yes, I did look.
Retro shell, current cushioning
Protro is Nike’s word for a retro rebuilt with today’s tech. Here that means a full-length Air Zoom strobel, a Cushlon 3.0 midsole, more mesh for airflow and extra padding in the tongue. The shape stays that of the 2008 mid; the low version of the Kobe 3 got its turn last year, and this is the first Protro of the high in this colour. If you actually hoop in it, it’s a Kobe 3 with better cushioning. If you collect, it’s the colour the shoe started with.
Cheap in dollars, steep in euros
This is where it gets honest. The US retail is $210, and on Solezilla.com we’re seeing four American listings — A Ma Maniére, Sneaker Politics, Undefeated and Social Status — all sitting right at that $210. So if you’re shopping in the States, this is a regular release at retail.
In Europe it’s a different picture. There are four euro listings and not one of them is retail: Undefeated EU at €287, Stadium Goods at €332, StockX at €409. Those are consignment and resale prices, because the shoe didn’t get a broad European SNKRS run. There’s no UK offer at all right now. Our Hypescore sits at 15, still in the INERT band — but it only dropped a week ago, so there’s barely any resale data to read yet, and that number will move once the market does.
My read, plainly: US buyers are fine at retail, European buyers are paying a premium for a shoe that’s days old. If you want it, compare per size on the Kobe 3 Protro “Orca” page, and the rest of the line sits on the Nike Kobe 3 page.