February 8th, 2024, will forever be memorialized as one of the greatest days in recent sports history. This date marks the date of remembrance for arguably one of the greatest basketball players who has ever walked this earth, Kobe “Bean” Bryant.

After years of waiting for the inevitable, Kobe’s statue would be revealed outside of the Crypto.com arena in Los Angeles, California. Amidst a backdrop of fellow athletes, fans who loved him from all walks of life, dignitaries, the bronze statue of Kobe’s likeness stood as a symbol of inspiration and perseverance.

On this joyous occasion Vanessa Bryant, Kobe’s wife, made sure not to leave any room for discussion on the pose that was chose to immortalize her late husband stating, “For the record, Kobe picked the pose you’re about to see. So if anybody has any issue with it, tough sh*t.” Her comment was met with laughter and loved by all.

It was later revealed that Kobe would be receiving 2 more statues to go outside of the arena. Statue number 2 being of the second half of his career in the number 24 jersey whilst statue number 3 being a depiction of him and his daughter Gigi.

After 20 seasons in a Laker uniform with essentially 2 Hall of Fame worthy careers can you think of another athlete as deserving? Finishing his career 3rd all time in scoring with 33643 points, the second highest scoring game of all time with 81 points, 5 championships, 1 regular season MVP, 2 Finals MVPs, 18 All star sections and a never ending list of accomplishments there aren’t many others that could compare resumes with Mr. Bryant.

I think it’s safe to say Kobe is loved, missed and will never be forgotten. As we all close out our day remembering the man who had the world hurling paper basketballs at the garbage can with an emphatic, “KOBE!” Mamba out.

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