Orange County honoring Kobe Bryant in awesome way
By Scott Rogust
The Los Angeles Lakers legend will forever be remembered in Orange County.
On Jan. 26, sports fans were shocked to hear that Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna, and seven others were killed in a fatal helicopter crash in Calabasas, Calif. Nearly seven months following the tragedy that took one of the NBA’s most influential players in history, the area he called home for over 20 years is honoring him in a grand way.
On Tuesday, the Orange County Board of Supervisors declared that Aug. 24 will forever be known as “Kobe Bryant Day,” in honor of his No. 8 and 24 uniform numbers. The board listed how the day should be celebrated in the following resolution:
“Encourage members of our community to continue Kobe Bryant’s legacy by engaging in community building helping young people in need, encouraging aspiring youth to follow their dreams, and living by Bryant’s words: ‘The most important thing is to try and inspire people so that they can be great in whatever they want to do,'” the resolution read, via a document obtained by TMZ.
Kobe Bryant left a lasting legacy in the Los Angeles area
Orange County’s declaration of “Kobe Bryant Day” comes four years after Los Angeles declared Aug. 24 “Kobe Bryant Day” following the star’s retirement from the NBA.
Bryant, a native of Philadelphia, P.A., joined the Lakers back in 1996 after the team acquired him from the Charlotte Hornets in that year’s NBA Draft. Bryant became an instant star on the hardwood, where he was famously praised by Michael Jordan in ESPN’s The Last Dance when the two met in the 1998 All-Star Game.
In his 20 seasons with the Lakers, Bryant won five NBA Championships, two NBA Finals MVP Awards, an NBA MVP Award in 2008 and two Olympic Gold Medals. Additionally, he was named to 18 All-Star Games and 11 All-NBA First Teams. All in all, Bryant tallied 33,643 points, 6,306 assists and 7,407 rebounds.
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Bryant was set to be posthumously inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame this year but was postponed due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. While his induction will be delayed by a year, those in the Orange County area will celebrate Bryant’s life and legacy later this month.