The Lakers unveiled a statue in honor of Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna Friday outside Crypto.com Arena in downtown Los Angeles.
The statue, the second in Bryant's likeness outside the House That Kobe Built, was revealed in a private tented ceremony and will be available for public viewing this weekend. It depicts Bryant with his arm around Gigi sitting courtside at a Lakers game Dec. 29, 2019.
It is one of three planned monuments in tribute to the Lakers great, who was among nine people, including daughter Gigi, killed in a January 2020 helicopter crash in Calabasas as they traveled to a basketball tournament northwest of Los Angeles.
The unveiling was on a date (8/2/24) of numeric significance for the five-time NBA champion and Gigi, a talented young player often seen courtside with her father at Crypto.com Arena engaged in conversation about the game. Bryant wore 8 during the first part of his career, then switched to jersey No. 24. Gigi wore jersey No. 2
Get Tri-state area news delivered to your inbox.> Sign up for NBC New York's News Headlines newsletter.
Vanessa Bryant spoke at the unveiling about the inspiration behind the statue.
"We merged two iconic courtside moments of Kobe and Gigi. Gianna has her gorgeous smile on her face and Kobe is kissing the top of her head while wearing the Philadelphia Eagles beanie that Gigi gifted him for Christmas," she said. "He’s also wearing a WNBA hoodie he wore courtside to the game with Gigi. Kobe was the first NBA player to wear that orange hoodie to a big game and that was to show his support for Gigi's dreams and for women across all sports. That was a moment he shared with Gigi that will always be a powerful representation of the movement towards equality that was always so important to our family.
"We were faced with the harsh reality that no matter how great Gianna was or could be, no matter how great her daddy taught her how to play, or even if she played exactly like Kobe, she would not have had the same benefits and opportunities that her dad and young men currently have because she’s a girl. That’s when the challenge to change the perception of women’s sports started in our household. Gianna would be going into her first year of college this year. We would be watching her shine on the court. Now her spirit is shining a path she has created for young girls and for women in sports.
"In honor of Kobe and Gigi, I ask you this: give young girls your time. Give them your support. Tell them they can do anything any man can do and tell them they can exceed that, because they can, they have and they will. Iron sharpens iron. Reassure that confidence and see how much they thrive. Sometimes, all we need is one person to believe in us, even if that one person is ourselves. Take girls to watch women play sports. Buy those tickets to the game if you can. Watch women’s games on TV with your daughters, nieces and cousins. If young girls can see professional women play, they know they have the potential to be them. They know those ambitions aren’t just dreams but will become a reality. Let’s build up the next generation of athletes. It’s what Gigi and Kobe would want us to do.
"Kobe was the ultimate Girl Dad and Gigi was the ultimate Daddy’s girl."
A third Kobe Bryant monument will be unveiled next season.
The date of the first statue unveiling held the same significance -- 2/8/24. The 19-foot bronze memorial depicts Bryant in his No. 8 jersey celebrating his virtuoso 81-point performance against Toronto. Widow Vanessa Bryant said at the February ceremony that the third statue will show Bryant in his No. 24 jersey.
Other Laker greats honored with a statue outside Crypto.com Arena are Elgin Baylor, Shaquille O'Neal, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Jerry West and announcer Chick Hearn.
Both of Bryant's uniform numbers were retired by the Lakers in 2017, the year after his retirement after 20 NBA season, all with the Lakers. He is the first NBA player with two numbers retired by the same team.
Bryant is the franchise leader in games (1,346), minutes played (48,637), field goals (11,719) and 3-point baskets (1,827), among numerous team records.
