Former NBA star Kobe Bryant has received a stamp of honor in Hollywood.
Vanessa Bryant and her daughters Natalia, 20; Bianka, 6; and Capri, 3, attended an unveiling of her late husband’s foot and handprints on March 13, outside the TCL Chinese Theatre.
According to E! News, the permanent installment of Kobe’s imprints, which were made back in 2011, is the first cement engraving of an athlete at the famous theatre.
Following the unveiling, Natalia honored her father with a speech.
“Being his daughter is one of the greatest joys of my life, and I hope to continue to embody and cherish the many lessons he has taught me.”
Reportedly, celebrities whose imprints are installed outside the iconic location are normally replaced with another, due to limited space, but Kobe’s will remain.
“As you visit here for years to come, I encourage you to place your hands in his and take a moment to stand in his shoes,” Natalia said in her speech commemorating the occasion. “This day symbolizes the impact he had on a city he loved and cared for.”
Commemorations for Kobe have continued since his memorial in 2020. Recently, Vanessa revisited the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles to celebrate the retirement of Kobe’s teammate Pau Gasol, as the Lakers hung his jersey next to the legend’s.
“I miss him so much like many of us do,” Pau said about Kobe, who he considered a brother, adding, he “elevated me, inspired me, challenged me to be a better player, just to be a better man overall.”
“Pau was special to Kobe as a teammate, as a man, and as a friend,” Vanessa said in an introductory video. “Pablo, Kobe predicted you and he would be together in the rafters.”
As previously reported by BLACK ENTERPRISE, Kobe died in January 2020 in a private helicopter crash in Calabasas, CA. Vanessa and Kobe’s daughter Gianna also lost her life as a passenger aboard the aircraft.