Do you remember Kobe Bryant winning an Oscar back in 2018? The then-recently retired Los Angeles Lakers star won an Oscar for the Best Animated Short Film for his short “Dear Basketball”. The short was basically an animation of Bryant's final love letter to the game of basketball.

Well, four years later, one of Bryant's closest friends followed in his footsteps to win an award as well. Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe's partner with the Lakers, was an executive producer of the Oscar-winning short documentary “The Queen of Basketball”, alongside Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry. (via Yahoo Sports)

Aside from being executive producers, both O'Neal and Curry were heavily involved in promoting the documentary. The Oscar win validated the support from the Lakers and Warriors legends.

“The Queen of Basketball” follows the story of Luisa “Lucy” Harris, one of the pioneers of women's basketball in the world. Aside from winning the first silver medal for women's basketball for the US, Harris was the first (and to date, the only) woman to be drafted in the NBA. Shaq spoke highly about the documentary back in January, when the Lakers star said this:

“When I saw [the film], it kind of made me cry. I said to myself, ‘I got to do whatever it takes to bring this story to the world…’ I want to see Lusia on the Oscars, the red carpet, want to see this woman get her shot. I want her to have that moment where she gets to talk to an even bigger audience, to be able to inspire the future generations.”

Luisa Harris unfortunately died a few weeks before “The Queen of Basketball” was nominated for an Oscar. Still, Shaq, Curry, and the rest of the crew are relieved that the pioneer was recognized in front of a big stage even after her death.