Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant had his first statue unveiled outside of Crypto.com Arena on Feb. 8 of this year. Vanessa Bryant stated that it would be the first of three statues being given to the Laker great to honor his contributions to the franchise as well as his impact on the city of Los Angeles. At the time, not many details were given about the second and third statue.
But now, details of the second statue are being released as the Lakers prepare to unveil the next in the statue series to honor Bryant. This one involves Gianna Bryant, Kobe’s late daughter that passed away in the same tragic helicopter crash. In the years after Bryant’s retirement, he and Gianna were rarely seen apart from one another as he took over coaching her youth basketball team.
The two will now be enshrined together forever outside of Crypto.com Arena with the second statue being unveiled later this week, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN:
A statue depicting Kobe Bryant and daughter Gianna “Gigi” Bryant will be unveiled in a private tented ceremony Friday outside of Crypto.com Arena, sources told ESPN.
Details were also given about the exact location of the statue and when fans will be able to access the statue for the first time after Friday’s private ceremony:
The statue of the father and daughter is located near the Los Angeles Kings’ monument celebrating the team’s 50th anniversary. It will be available for the public to visit starting Saturday morning, sources told ESPN.
The Friday unveiling is intentional because of the Aug. 2, 2024 date that includes the same meaningful numbers as the original Feb. 8 statue date. Bryant’s No. 8 and No. 24 are represented by the month (August) and the year (2024) while Gianna’s No. 2 is represented by the date itself.
The third statue is expected to be unveiled sometime next season.
Shams Charania names Kobe Bryant as his GOAT
For the most part, the GOAT debate comes down to Michael Jordan vs. LeBron James. But there remains a contingency of people who put Kobe Bryant atop their list as the greatest to ever play the game.
For a lot of people, the GOAT argument also encompasses who they were able to grow up watching. Obviously there are videos everyone can go back and watch and stats are readily available, but those moments in real-time are hard to replicate and that is certainly the case for NBA Insider Shams Charania. He was asked who his GOAT was, and he named the Lakers legend.
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