My Hero Academia Honors Kobe Bryant with New Sketch

The creator of My Hero Academia is a comic fan through and through. Kohei Horikoshi has never shied away from his love of pop culture and sports is very much included. In fact, fans know Izuku is a fan of Air Jordans as he rocks them daily, but Horikoshi haas another athlete on his mind right now. Like millions of others, the artist is still reeling over the tragic death of Kobe Bryant, and Horikoshi has paid tribute to the star player in the wake of his loss.

Over on Twitter, the quiet tribute came in the form of a sketch. A short drawing was posted by Horikoshi to hype the release of My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising in 4D theaters. The film, which will come to the U.S. in February, has been a hit overseas so far. And if you look at the drawing carefully, you will find a Bryant tribute.

If you check out Izuku, you will see the hero is dressed in some summery clothes as he goes about his job. With two kids in two, Izuku looks every inch of a Pro Hero as he soars through the sky. On his feet, the star has replaced his usual red Air Jordans for some different sneakers, and they are shoes which Bryant inspired.

As you can see above, the shoes hail from Nike and honor one of the Lakers’ greatest players of all time. Izuku appears to be wearing Nike Zoom Kobe 1 kicks. The shoes are some of the rarest NBA pieces out there. The now-retro shoes can cost up to $500 easily from sellers, and they will only continue to rise in value. But as you can see, Izuku cares little about cost when it comes to honor a true hero, and Bryant was one such star to millions.

Did you notice this tribute from the start? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics and anime.

My Hero Academia was created by Kohei Horikoshi for Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump in 2014. The story follows Izuku Midoriya, who lives in a world where everyone has powers, even though he was born without them. Dreaming to become a superhero anyway, he’s eventually scouted by the world’s best hero All Might and enrolls in a school for professional heroes.