Former NBA player and Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant passed away tragically alongside his daughter Gianna in January of 2020. But their legacy still lives on as proven Friday as his birthday is today where he would have been 46-years old. Such figures in the basketball world posted their messages on social media to honor the memory of Bryant such as Magic Johnson, Pau Gasol, and Dwayne Wade.

Starting with Johnson, he is obviously a Lakers icon in his own right that was a part of the franchise's dynasty that was a huge part of the 1980s along side Larry Bird on the Boston Celtics. Johnson would take to his X, formerly Twitter, account to celebrate Bryant's birthday by mentioning his many accomplishments such as his five NBA championships which the legend also has.

“Happy heavenly birthday to the 5x NBA Champion, Olympic Gold Medalist, Oscar and Academy Award Winner, and my friend Kobe Bryant! We all miss you, but your legacy lives on with us forever,” Johnson said Friday.

Another person who celebrated the birthday of the late, great basketball player was Gasol who was close friends with Bryant and teammates on the Lakers where they won two championships together in 2009 and 2010. Gasol is still heavily involved with the Bryant family to this day and posted a heartfelt message where he said he misses him “dearly” and will “always” think of him.

“Happy birthday brother. I miss you dearly and I’m always thinking of you,” Gasol said.

More birthday wishes for Lakers icon Kobe Bryant

Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant (24) dribbles the ball against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena.
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Despite not being involved with the Lakers in any way shape or form, former NBA basketball player for the Miami Heat Dwyane Wade also shared his birthday wishes to Bryant on social media by reposting an original post with “My Brother.” Alongside Michael Jordan, Bryant and Wade are considered two of the greatest shooting guards of all time as both had some great battles and were friends off the court.

These three were far from the only ones to post about Bryant's 46th birthday whether it be fans of basketball, the Lakers, or even athletes from any sport. His impact on sports is beyond basketball at this point, but the official team's X account also shared their birthday wishes citing Bryant as the “heart and soul” of Los Angeles.

“Los Angeles' heart & soul,” the Lakers account wrote. “Happy Birthday Kobe.”

There is no doubt that Bryant's name will live forever in the record books in terms of basketball, but more importantly, his legacy will live on with how he impacted people around the world and these birthday wishes are a microcosm of it.