A statue depicting Kobe Bryant and daughter Gianna “Gigi” Bryant will be unveiled in a private tented ceremony Friday outside of Crypto.com Arena, a source from the Los Angeles Lakers informed ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
Los Angeles Lakers will unveil a statue depicting Kobe Bryant, daughter Gianna “Gigi” Bryant on Friday
The statue is the second of three planned monuments to the Lakers legend, who died in a helicopter crash in Calabasas along with Gigi and seven others in January 2020.
The first statue, a 19-foot bronze memorial to Bryant’s 81-point game against the Toronto Raptors, was unveiled on Feb. 8. An inscription under the statue features the box score from that game.
However, one player from each team had their name spelled wrong: ex-Raptors guard Jose Calderon — whose last name was spelled “Calderson” — and former Lakers forward Von Wafer – whose first name was engraved as “Vom.”
A 2nd Kobe Bryant statue will be unveiled in a private ceremony tomorrow (8/2/24), per @mcten
“A statue depicting Kobe Bryant and daughter Gianna ‘Gigi’ Bryant will be unveiled in a private tented ceremony Friday outside of https://t.co/U8AF0mTnIg Arena, sources told ESPN….The… pic.twitter.com/aVqLGTitVh
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) August 1, 2024
Those typos have since been corrected. The 4,000-pound bronze statue was sculpted by renowned sculptor Julie Rotblatt Amrany of the Fine Art Studio of Rotblatt Amrany in Highwood, Illinois.
The triangular base bears an inscription of one of Kobe Bryant’s most memorable quotes: “Leave the game better than you found it. And when it comes time for you to leave, leave a legend.”
“For the record,” his widow Vanessa Bryant said at the unveiling ceremony, “Kobe picked the pose you’re about to see, so if anyone has any issues with it, tough s—t.”
The date August 2, 2024, was chosen for the ceremony because Bryant wore Nos. 8 and 24, Gigi wore No. 2
Friday’s date (8/2/24) was chosen for the ceremony (2/8/24) because it represents both of Bryant’s uniform numbers (8 and 24). It also symbolizes the No. 2 that 13-year-old Gigi wore on the basketball court.
Additionally, the Lakers retired his Nos. 8 and 24 in 2017. The statue of Kobe and his daughter will be located near the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings’ monument celebrating the team’s 50th anniversary.
According to reports, the statue will be available for the public to visit starting Saturday morning.
Vanessa Bryant revealed at the February ceremony that the third statue would show her late husband sporting his No. 24 Lakers uniform. The third statue is expected to be unveiled during the 2024-25 season.
For Kobe. For the die-hard Laker fans. For our family.
Mamba forever. pic.twitter.com/uExf0oEWgY
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) February 9, 2024
Kobe Bryant spent his entire 20-year career with the Lakers before retiring in 2016. The 18-time All-Star was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021.
In 2022, to commemorate the NBA’s 75th Anniversary, The Athletic ranked their top 75 players of all time. The site named Bryant as the 10th-greatest player in NBA history. He was the second-highest shooting guard on the list, behind only Michael Jordan.
Bryant was the Lakers’ all-time leader in points (33,643), steals (1,944), turnovers (4,010), and games played (1,346). Black Mamba also won five NBA championships (2000-02, 2009, 2010) and two Finals MVPs (2009, 2010) during his tenure.
Moreover, Bryant was the first player in NBA history to have at least 30,000 points and 6,000 assists. He was also one of only four players with 25,000 points, 6,000 rebounds, and 6,000 assists. Bryant led the NBA in scoring during the 2005-06 (35.4 PPG) and 2006-07 seasons (31.6 PPG).
