Kobe Bryant was one of the greatest players in NBA history, which is why the Los Angeles Lakers honored his memory with a statue outside of Crypto.com Arena on February 8, 2024. However, this statue of Kobe was quickly met with backlash due to Lakers fans noticing several errors. Included on the statue was the box score of Bryant's historic 81-point game against the Toronto Raptors, but there were spelling errors in the names of Jose Calderon, Von Wafer, and others.
When this was noticed by Lakers officials, the team issued a statement saying that they had known about this issue for weeks and were working on getting the correct changes made to Kobe's statue. That time has finally come, as the Kobe Bryant statue in front of the Lakers' area was restored on Tuesday morning, according to ESPN's Dave McMenamin.
Of course, Kobe's statue was corrected and fixed ahead of the Lakers' season finale against the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night.
Kobe Bryant's statue receives restoration
In addition to fixing the misspelled names of Calderon and Wafer on Bryant's statue, the formatting on the list of statical achievements throughout Bryant's career was also adjusted slightly. The Lakers' main goal for the restoration process with this statue was to not only provide accurate information on the NBA legend but also ensure that all the information was correct in order to honor his legacy. Bryant's exact signature on the monument was also changed from “Kobe 24” to just simply “Kobe.”
Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna were tragically killed during a helicopter crash that took place in Calabasas, California, in January 2020. The Lakers, who have honored Bryant and his death on countless occasions throughout the course of the last several years, made the unveiling of the Hall of Famer's statue a special occasion on Feb. 8, 2024, a date that represents both Kobe and Gianna for their jersey numbers.
Kobe Bryant's statue has quickly become the most sought-after attraction for Lakers fans during home games in Los Angeles. The memory of Bryant runs a lot deeper than just the game of basketball, as his support and advancements for women's sports as a whole helped create the foundation for the sports world we have today.
This statue, which was revealed in February, is one of three monuments the Lakers plan to honor Bryant. The second statue will be of Kobe in his famous No. 24 uniform, while the other will be of him with Gianna. There have been no further details revealed as to when the Lakers will honor Bryant and his family with these statues.
The team will provide further details on their other projects to honor Bryant at a later date.
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