There are those moments in life when something happens that seems to stop time. You remember right where you were when you heard the news. You remember all the vivid details of the day because it seemed as though time stopped at that moment. That's what it was like for basketball fans around the world on the day of Kobe and Gianna Bryant's passing, alongside the other seven victims in a fatal helicopter crash in January 2020.
For me, I remember I was at my father's house when my brother walked in my room and broke the news to me. I had to check 10 different websites to try to debunk it as some kind of sick joke, but it was real. A real tragedy that shocked the basketball world and the world in general.
Basketball, the NBA, and the Los Angeles Lakers have done a good job at memorializing the all-time great shooting guard and his beautiful relationship with his daughter though.
Lakers unveil a new Kobe and Gianna Bryant statue and it's beautiful
Following the death of the nine passengers aboard the helicopter on that fateful January morning, players and teams around the league began to honor Kobe in their own ways. Players began games by taking eight second violations or 24 second shot clock violations, both of which were the numbers that Kobe wore on the court.
On Friday, the Lakers unveiled the new statue of Kobe and Gianna Bryant located outside of Crypto.com Arena. If you haven't gotten to see the statue yet, here is the statue in question, courtesy of Aron Cohen of Lakers All Day Everyday.
This is just the second statue of three planned Kobe Bryant statues that the Lakers will unveil around their arena. The first statue was unveiled on Feb. 8, 2024 (2/8/24) and the second statue was unveiled on Aug. 2, 2024 (8/2/24). Gianna wore No. 2 on the basketball court and the Nos. 8 and 24 are both of Kobe's numbers, retired by the Lakers.
Fans can view the new statue starting Saturday morning, Aug. 3.
ESPN Staff Writer, Dave McMenamin had details regarding the third and final planned statue of Bryant that Los Angeles is going to unveil.
"Bryant's widow, Vanessa, revealed at the February ceremony that the third statue would show her late husband donning his No. 24 Lakers uniform," McMenamin wrote. "The third statue is expected to be unveiled sometime next season, sources told ESPN."