Adam Levine remembers Kobe Bryant while dropping $11,000 on sneakers: 'He was my guy'

Adam Levine is Joe La Puma's latest guest on Complex's Sneaker Shopping, and the Maroon 5 frontman made the most of his time at SoleStage in Los Angeles.

Before dropping a whopping $11,880 on seven new pairs of sneakers—some of which were for his wife and converted sneakerhead Behati Prinsloo—Levine dished on sitting courtside at the Staples Center as "the greatest showcase for sneakers" and what memories he carries with him from watching the late Kobe Bryant's illustrious 20-year Los Angeles Lakers career up close.

"He was my guy," the three-time Grammy winner said. "I think we all miss him so much. Being from L.A., born and raised, it was such a huge part of my life growing up. I saw so many of his most celebrated moments—I was there. Too many to mention, actually. So, it was tragic. I still really haven't fully been able to grasp it. I'm still kind of in shock."

Levine, 42, also assessed Bryant's sought-after signature Nike shoes—a partnership that expired late last month: "What's so great about the Kobes is that when it comes to playing basketball, there's not—in my mind, there isn't a better shoe when it comes to hooping. Like, you're hooping in Kobes. You're not hooping in Jordans. And if you are, that's weird."

Bryant was posthumously inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame over the weekend as a headliner of the 2020 class: