While the trade deadline is this week, there is another monumental event happening as the Los Angeles Lakers are set to unveil Kobe Bryant’s statue in front of Crypto.com Arena on Thursday before the game against the Denver Nuggets.
Bryant’s untimely passing caught the entire world off guard so it will be an emotional but great moment for L.A. as another legend will be immortalized. The five-time champion was deserving of a statue with the impact he left on the Lakers and the game of basketball, and now it is finally happening.
The biggest point of contention amongst fans is what the statue will look like and how Bryant will be depicted and LeBron James admits it is hard to pick one to immortalize but acknowledges how special of a moment it will be, via Jovan Buha of The Athletic:
“I don’t think he has one image that pops into my head to say that’s the one that should be immortalized on the statue. There’s too many memories, too many plays, too many moments that he had. But I also think at the same time, it’s only right. It’s been two decades with the organization, won multiple championships, set a precedence of what it means to strive for excellence. He’s a part of our fanbase for quite a while and I think his accomplishments speak for themselves. Not only his inspiration, but how he inspired people off the floor as well in the community and across the landscape of basketball. So I think it’s a beautiful moment for not only him, but for his family.”
It has been a long time coming for Kobe as this statue puts the Black Mamba’s career into perspective as he was a one-of-a-kind talent. While he is known for his scoring capabilities, James believes that Bryant’s game did not have any flaws:
“He had a game that was, he didn’t have any flaws. So you just had to be on your toes throughout the course of however many minutes he was playing, which was probably gonna be 40-plus. You couldn’t take a possession off because he was relentless out on the floor every single night.”
James and Bryant shared some memorable battles against one another throughout the years but unfortunately they were unable to face off in the Finals.
Nonetheless, the anticipation for the statue is mounting and it will be yet another historic moment for the Lakers organization. Bryant left the NBA with endless highlights and inspired many all around the globe.
As there are only a few more days until the statue is revealed, the speculation will all be laid to rest soon. However, the Lakers Nation staff recently weighed in on what they thought Kobe Bryant’s statue should look like.
