Kobe Bryant immortalized with 19-foot bronze statue at Lakers’ arena،
LOS ANGELES — It was a seemingly impossible task to distill Kobe Bryant's 20-year Hall of Fame career with the Los Angeles Lakers into an enduring pose, sculpted in bronze, to forever honor the basketball great.
Bryant's family and the Lakers therefore chose three.
The first, featuring Bryant in his No. 8 uniform, one finger pointed skyward as he left the court after his 81-point game against the Raptors in 2006, was unveiled Thursday afternoon with dozens of Lakers luminaries at your fingertips.
“Leave the game better than you found it. And when it's time to leave, leave a legend.” pic.twitter.com/h58OKd7Ll1
-Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) February 9, 2024
“For the record, Kobe chose the pose that you're about to see, so if anyone has problems with it, it's tough,” Bryant's widow, Vanessa, said from a stage at the ceremony under tent installed on Star Plaza. outside Crypto.com Arena.
The bronze statue, which stands 19 feet tall and weighs 4,000 pounds, is surrounded by five replica Larry O'Brien trophies and sits atop a black triangle-shaped base — an ode to the former's triangle offense Lakers coach Phil Jackson and his assistant. Tex winter.
The side of the base features a quote from Bryant that says, “Leave the game better than you found it.” And when it's time to leave, leave a legend. »
In a modern touch, there is a QR code on the statue that fans can scan with their phone, leading to a video of Bryant's highlights narrated by Denzel Washington.
The planned location and unveiling date of the other two statues – one of Bryant in his No. 24 uniform and the other with his daughter, Gianna, who also died in the 2020 helicopter crash – remains to be determined , according to a Lakers spokesperson.
“When I heard there were going to be three statues, I just said, 'That's appropriate,'” said Rob Pelinka, Bryant's longtime friend and agent, currently vice president of basketball operations. ball and general manager of the Lakers. “Because that's exactly how the City of Angels feels about Kobe. He deserves something that no other athlete who has played here deserves.”
Vanessa Bryant was the last of five speakers at the ceremony, after Lakers Governor Jeanie Buss; former Lakers guard Derek Fisher; Lakers’ all-time great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar; and Jackson, who coached Bryant to all five of his titles.
Jackson shared a memory of the game that inspired the statue – the second-highest individual score in NBA history – which took place the same season when Bryant single-handedly dominated the Dallas Mavericks 62-61 in three quarters and that Jackson was sitting. him for the fourth quarter because victory was assured and he wanted to save Bryant's best for “another game another night.”
“But the night he got 81 points, we needed all those points,” Jackson said. “They were running a zone against us, and we designed a little offensive scheme that exaggerated Kobe having a one-on-one opportunity with a power forward, a small forward or Jalen Rose. He ate that up.”
Vanessa Bryant credited her husband's finger as an everlasting ode to LA fans
“Today also I was a little struck by the fact that he points to the sky and just knows that he and Gigi are in the right place,” Pelinka added. “The pose took on a different meaning for me here.”
Abdul-Jabbar, a storyteller much like Bryant, offered a thoughtful tribute.
“This statue may look like Kobe, but in reality it represents what excellence looks like, what discipline looks like, what commitment looks like, what love of family looks like,” Abdul said -Jabbar. “The statue is a wonderful contribution. It captures a person frozen in time, while recognizing that the reason there is a statue in the first place is because that person is timeless.”
Fisher, who was part of the same draft class and joined the Lakers as rookies in 1996, spoke about Bryant's growing popularity before his eyes.
“In basketball, he wasn't just a player, he was a legend, like a true living legend,” Fisher said. “That’s what it felt like to be with him.”
Buss shared a quote from his father, the late Jerry Buss.
“Anyone who watched him play knows he did things on the court like no one else. He was a fighter, a fighter, a winner, and he was also an artist, and he could bend the world to his will,” she said. . “I think that’s what my dad meant when he said watching Kobe play was like seeing a miracle happen.”
The invitation-only crowd included Bryant's daughters and sister; Laker greats Magic Johnson, Jerry West, Michael Cooper, Jamaal Wilkes, Mychal Thompson and Pau Gasol; Bryant's former teammates Metta World Peace, Caron Butler, Lamar Odom, Sasha Vujacic, Matt Barnes, Mark Madsen, Gary Payton, Larry Nance, Josh Powell, Kareem Rush, Devean George, AC Green, Vladimir Radmanovic and Trevor Ariza; former coaches Del Harris, Jim Cleamons and Larry Drew; and other friends of Bryant from the sports community and pop culture: Russell Wilson and his wife, Ciara, Bad Bunny, Dwyane Wade, Lisa Leslie, Candace Parker, Jamal Crawford and Sydney Leroux.
The statue is modeled after a photograph taken by longtime NBA photographer Noah Graham, who was a guest but was just as surprised as everyone else when the golden curtain was lowered.
“When that confetti exploded, that’s when I knew,” Graham told ESPN. “I had no idea. In the world of Kobe moments, it makes sense to me. But I'm biased. I was there. It's through my eyes. Of course, I'm going to vote for something thing I did.
“But just in the sense of Kobe and his connection with the fans, it seemed to make the most sense. It shows that two-way street between 'I see you' and 'You see me.'”
Bryant also made his teammates fans for life.
“I couldn't be more grateful for everything Kobe has done for our team and for me,” Madsen, now Cal's men's basketball coach, told ESPN. “He pushed everyone to be the best version of themselves.”
And Powell, who recently wrote his first book, said Bryant's ambitions off the court exceeded his own.
“I didn't think writing a book would be an option for me, but after seeing what he was able to accomplish and how he did it, it made me want to step out of my comfort zone .”
The statue was designed by Julie Rotblatt-Amrany, the sculptor of the Michael Jordan statue in Chicago as well as the West and Chick Hearn statues in Los Angeles.
“As I see today's generation of star players follow in Kobe's footsteps with huge milestone games, I know he would be proud to know that he continues to draw inspiration from the game that was so special to him,” Vanessa Bryant said.
