Wave Wire Services
LOS ANGELES — A second statue of Kobe Bryant outside Crypto.com Arena, depicting the late Laker legend sitting courtside with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna, was unveiled Aug. 2.
The statue depicts the pair sitting in courtside seats, with Kobe kissing Gianna on the head. Angel wings spread out behind the pair, who are encircled by purple and gold flowers.
A gold plaque in front of them includes a quote from Kobe, saying, “Gianna is a beast. She’s better than I was at her age. She’s got it. Girls are amazing. I would have five more girls if I could. I’m a girl dad.”
The plaque refers to Kobe as “Most Valuable Girl Dad.” It refers to Gianna as an “Inspirational Icon for Girls in Sports.”
According to the Lakers, Bryant’s widow, Vanessa, spoke to the small crowd at the unveiling, urging attendees to support women and girls in sports, since they are not afforded “the same benefits and opportunities” as young men.
“Gianna would be going into her first year of college this year,” she said. “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.”
Kobe and Gianna Bryant both died along with seven other people in a Calabasas helicopter crash on Jan. 26, 2020.
The Lakers unveiled the first statue of Bryant outside the arena on Feb. 8. During that ceremony, Vanessa Bryant announced that there would eventually be three statues in his honor outside the area, although no timeline was provided for their unveiling.
ESPN noted that the statue was unveiled on Aug. 2, 2024, a significant tie to Bryant, representing the two uniform numbers he wore with the Lakers, 8 and 24, and Gianna’s number 2.
The Feb. 8 date of the first statue unveiling — 2/8/24 — bore the same connection.
According to ESPN, the third planned statue will be unveiled sometime next season.
Other Laker greats commemorated with a statue outside the arena are Elgin Baylor, Shaquille O’Neal, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Jerry West and announcer Chick Hearn.
Bryant was known as “Black Mamba” during his 20-year Hall of Fame NBA career with the Lakers.
Both of Kobe Bryant’s uniform numbers were retired by the Lakers in 2017, the year after he hung up his sneakers — making him the first NBA player to have two numbers retired by the same team. He wore No. 8 from 1996 to 2006, then switched to No. 24 for the rest of his career.
Bryant played his entire career with the Lakers and is their leader in games (1,346), minutes played (48,637), field goals (11,719) and 3-point baskets (1,827), among numerous team records.
