It's hard to believe that it's been more than four years since Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, were among those lost in a helicopter crash in January 2020. Since then, the NBA legend's wife, Vanessa Bryant, has been doing everything she can to keep her late husband and daughter's legacy alive, and now, that includes a major piece of art outside of the arena where the Los Angeles Lakers play their home games: a statue of Kobe and Gianna appropriately titled Girl Dad.
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The statue was officially unveiled on August 2.
Located outside of the Crypto.com Arena in downtown Los Angeles, the statue shows Kobe and Gianna in an embrace as they're encircled by a large pair of angel wings. Gianna is leaning her head on her dad's shoulder as he kisses her on the head.
According to People, the statue was designed by Karon Davis and created by artists at Rotblatt Amrany Studio.
Vanessa said that the statue pays tribute to the family's dedication to women's sports.
"We merged two iconic courtside moments of Kobe and Gigi," she told the crowd at the unveiling. "Gianna has her gorgeous smile on her face and Kobe is kissing the top of her head while wearing the Philadelphia Eagles beanie that Gigi gifted him for Christmas. He’s also wearing a WNBA hoodie he wore courtside to the game with Gigi. Kobe was the first NBA player to wear that orange hoodie to a big game and that was to show his support for Gigi’s dreams and for women across all sports."
Vanessa opened up about where her daughter would be today if she were still alive.
"Gianna would be going into her first year of college this year. 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," Vanessa said.
Along with Gianna, Kobe and Vanessa shared three other daughters, Natalia, Bianka, and Capri.
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This isn't the first time a statue has been erected for Kobe and Gianna.
Back in 2022, a 160-pound sculpture of Kobe and Gianna was placed at the site of the crash in honor of the second anniversary of their deaths. Though the statue only stayed in place for one day, it also listed the names of the pilot and the six passengers who were on board the helicopter that day and also died in the crash.
This is a beautiful way to pay tribute to the late NBA star.
After he dedicated so much of his time and his career to the Lakers organization, the stadium seems to be a truly fitting location for the statue.
Now, Vanessa and her daughters have a special statute to visit that represents two people they loved so much.
