Kobe Bryant's Statue Among Icons in Star Plaza LA Live
On Thursday, February 7th, there was a buzz of noise as a crowd of Lakers fans and vendors alike formed on Figueroa near Crypto.com Arena to celebrate the highly anticipated unveiling of Kobe Bryant’s statue in Star Plaza at LA Live. While residents and tourists of Los Angeles began wandering the area, access to Star Plaza was temporarily blocked, only open to the public on Friday, February 8th - a day that holds significance to many, as Bryant’s jersey numbers, No.8 and No. 24, were both retired towards the end of 2017, around one year after he retired from the NBA.
The unveiling of Kobe Bryant’s statue symbolizes a celebration of his legacy, as the fourth leading scorer in NBA history, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, Hall of Fame recipient, a pillar in the Los Angeles community, and a mainstay within the Lakers Legacy for his entire professional basketball career of 20 years. This statue is the first of many to stand up to honor his legacy, alongside fellow athletes: Elgin Baylor, Shaquille O’Neal, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Jerry West, Chick Hearn, Los Angeles Kings’ Wayne Gretzky, Luc Robitaille, Dustin Brown, champion boxer Oscar De La Hoya, and announcer Bob Miller. Star Plaza continues to be a magnet for LA residents and tourists, driving foot traffic of sports enthusiasts to take photos with the various statues.
With the statue being unveiled to the public on the morning of Friday, February 8th, there was a large crowd of over 50 people surrounding Bryant’s statue, leaving flowers, and taking pictures. The excitement and joy echoed throughout the plaza. After taking a few pictures of my own and passing the numerous vendors selling “#MambaMentality” t-shirts, it felt like a natural progression to visit some of the local restaurants, such as Fixin’s, Craft BBQ, Sol Agave, or Lazy Dog, where they displayed some of Kobe’s greatest moments on the court on televisions both inside and outside of the restaurants. Other memories captured and replayed on these televisions included: prominent players being interviewed about Kobe’s impact and some of Kobe’s archived interview footage as his career progressed with the NBA.
There was high energy and positivity everywhere, as moments and memories like these bring the LA community together, which is something Bryant also accomplished by matching his skill on the basketball court with the humility and generosity to support causes such as the Make-A-Wish foundation, granting over 200 wishes during his career, and he was an honorary chair for an initiative aimed to address homelessness through a HomeWalk. The Mamba and Mambacita foundation was founded to honor Kobe and his daughter, Gianna, to encourage and serve underserved groups in sports. Bryant’s legacy and spirit will continue to live on through this new statue, the several murals that you can find around Los Angeles, and through how he has inspired generations of athletes to reach for the stars.
By Francesca Dantzler