Fans around the world continue to mourn the sudden and tragic passing of Kobe Bryant, Gianna Bryant, and the seven other passengers.
Teams throughout the NBA have since found ways to pay homage to Bryant and the impact he made on the game of basketball by committing 24 and/or eight second shot clock violations to honor both of the jersey numbers he wore during his illustrious career. Meanwhile, players like Quinn Cook and Spencer Dinwiddie are among those that have changed their numbers to honor their childhood basketball hero.
There have even been plenty of talk about the NBA potentially changing its logo to feature Bryant as the new ‘face’ of the league. It seems the idea still has yet to gain any momentum in the league’s front office.
According to Dan Wetzel of Yahoo Sports, the NBA reportedly is not planning on putting any individual player:
Sources familiar with the league’s thinking said there is no interest in having an individual player as its logo because there are so many who have been instrumental in the growth of the game and the NBA. Generic is better.
Fans around the league have even started a petition to help make Bryant the new logo and it is currently on the cusp of topping over three million signatures:
With the untimely and unexpected passing of the great Kobe Bryant please sign this petition in an attempt to immortalize him forever as the new NBA Logo.
Although the prospect of Bryant as the new logo has not built up much steam in the league front office, the amount of signatures this petition has amassed so far is a clear indication of how the vast majority of NBA fans feel about the idea.
Jerry West has made it clear that he feels the time to replace him with a new logo has been long overdue. West had initially pegged Michael Jordan as a prime candidate, but it is safe to assume he would not be opposed to the idea of Bryant becoming his successor considering how close the pair had become during their time together in Los Angeles.
While there is no denying the lasting impact that Bryant made on the league as a whole during his 20 seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers, the report suggests that the NBA is not looking to feature any singular player. West’s begrudging willingness to serve as the logo has allowed them to avoid any legal hurdles while maintaining an iconic design for the brand and they may be looking to keep it that way.
Whether or not Bryant becomes the logo, his legacy has already been immortalized as one of the greatest basketball players in history as well as a loving husband and father.