Nike is lighting up summer 2025 with an electrifying new colorway: the Kobe 6 Protro ‘Total Orange’ (IH1871‑800). Dropping July 18, 2025, at $190, this release isn’t just a sneaker—it’s a vibrant tribute to the Mamba’s passion and his unwavering support for women’s basketball. 🧠 Inspired by Legacy The “Total Orange” palette isn’t random—it nods deeply to Kobe Bryant’s fiery spirit, and strategically ties into the WNBA All‑Star Weekend, celebrating Bryant’s impact on the women’s game. Even Reddit fans recognize this connection, noting the date shift to align with the event and referencing Kobe’s iconic bond with his daughter GiGi. 🎨 Design Breakdown - Vibrant Snakeskin Upper: A single shade of blazing orange dominates, echoing the original scaly textures that made the Kobe 6 iconic. - Metallic Silver Accents: The swoosh, tongue, and heel logos shine in contrast, grounding the heat with crisp highlights. - Cosmic Clay Touches: Subtle earth-toned lining adds depth beyond the bold upper....
If you were born after the year 2000 chances are you don’t understand their hype or significance. And Nike does well to capture the design aesthetics of the period that the original Air Barrage Mid was made in. The attention-grabbing, loud colorways are evidence of that.
The rubber sole has Nike air units that absorb the stress of your steps. The classic comfort of the original is included, because of the plush, mesh uppers and padded collars for all-day wearability. The Velcro portrays a nice old touch. Let’s take a look at each colorway.
With the base green colorway, the vibrant orange coloring of the Nike logo and other parts against the green gives off a bold, retro look. It’s a great compliment of colors, and probably the most attention-grabbing of the group.
The base blue and white colorways look like the second loudest. We have a lot more going on here with the addition of black and yellow. And there’s an argument to be made of these surpassing the green/orange colorways in loudness.
It just drips with nineties retro flare and oddities but all the colors work so well together they appear meant to be. The yellow steals the show here, getting the Nike swoosh treatment and being featured on the Nike air units. It shines against the blue complimentary background, and the white background makes these shoes stand out even more.
And then we have the quietest of the group, the black color. It’s like all the retro flare is hiding in the dark, so you do have to look a little closer to appreciate this black beauty as the design is just the same as the others. The white Nike swoosh and lace straps give these shoes some great “lighting.”
Then we have the popular university red showing up in another shoe release and paired with an ally, white. But we can’t hate this shoe at all, not with all the pros. The red is dominant in this colorway, sharing Nike swoosh logos with white, and adorning the upper and letters of the Nike air unit. The black is a welcome addition to the cast in mixing things up.
And finally, we have black, white and beautiful cabana colorways. The white and black share an equal foothold in this colorway with no clear winner, but the cabana color which is just on the lace strap, back heel and tongue stands out. It’s the final touch that completes a good looking pair of Nike Barrage Air Mids.
The Nike Air Barrage Mid retails for around $140 in stores stocking Nike products and of course at Nike.com.