As is tradition, especially with the passing of the Los Angeles Lakers legend earlier this year, August 24th is a full day dedicated to honoring Kobe Bryant.

With just about every player, coach and other NBA personnel — both past and present — taking the time to honor the late Bryant on Monday, Lakers head coach Frank Vogel was obviously no different.

Vogel paid homage to Bryant ahead of the Lakers' Game 4 against the eighth-seeded Portland Trail Blazers.

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“Kobe made it cool as hell to be a Laker,” Vogel told Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “For 20 years, he just had that swag about him.”

Kobe Bryant would have turned 42 years old on Sunday as the “Kobe Day” festivities definitely began a bit earlier than usual this year. Bryant, who notably spent his entire NBA playing career as a member of the heralded Lakers en route to winning a handful of titles along the way, perished as a result of a tragic helicopter accident back in January — which quite literally turned the basketball landscape upside down.

With such news still hard for some to even believe to be real as the month of September nears, the NBA continues to honor Bryant. In fact, starting this Aug. 24 is the so-called Mamba Week, with more tributes expected to come in the coming days.

For what it's worth, the Lakers will honor Kobe against the Lakers by wearing their ‘Black Mamba' jerseys.