One place that was extremely important to the Bryant family was Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach, as it was where all four of their children were born. As such, that place will always hold a special spot in Vanessa’s heart and she recently gave a large philanthropic gift to the hospital.

In response, Hoag renamed and dedicated the court in which Kobe would wait to pick up his wife and children as Kobe & Vanessa Bryant Family Court. Vanessa would release a statement praising the hospital, doctors and nurses for the care they gave her in her times there, via Matt Szabo of the L.A. Times:

“Hoag is a special place,” Vanessa Bryant said in a statement. “I have wonderful memories of the care and support I received from the amazing doctors and nurses. I want this gift to help more people experience that level of care when they need it.”

The dedication occurred on February 24, obviously an important date for the Bryant family with the number 2 representing Gianna Bryant’s jersey number and the 24 of course representing Kobe himself.

Today on 2/24, Vanessa Bryant has announced the new “Kobe and Vanessa Bryant Family Court” at Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach.

All 4 of the Bryant daughters were delivered there. pic.twitter.com/gjwJ3bGSYu

— Kobe Bryant Stories & Motivation (@kobehighlight) February 25, 2026

Hoag President and chief executive Robert Braithwaite also thanked the Bryant family for their gift and how proud they are of the connection they have with the family as a whole:

“This gesture from the Bryant family will have a lasting impact on Hoag, helping us significantly expand care in Newport Beach,” said Robert Braithwaite, president and chief executive of Hoag, in a statement. “What makes this gift so special is the meaningful connection the Bryant family has with Hoag. We’re proud to be part of their healthcare journey.”

As Braithwaite said, Hoag is in the midst of a major expansion throughout Southern California. They recently opened up a health center in San Clemente and their Sun Family Campus hospital in Irvine is undergoing a $1 billion expansion that should be completed this year.

Suns star Devin Booker misses Lakers legend Kobe Bryant

There are many current NBA players who looked up to Kobe Bryant and have taken on parts of his game and one of the best is Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker who spoke during All-Star Weekend about how much he misses the Lakers legend.

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It wasn’t too long ago that Swift gifted her ’22’ hat to Kobe’s daughter, Bianka, during her historic Eras tour and it is well known that Vanessa and the Bryant family are huge fans of the pop star. Swift recently released ‘Taylor Swift: The End of an Era’ docuseries which chronicled the behind the scenes moments and impact of the historic tour and within the series was a nod to Kobe and the Bryant family.

During one scene, Swift was sporting a blue Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation sweater as she prepared for her performance and Vanessa took to social media to thank Swift for the shoutout, via The Taylor Swift Updates:

| Kobe Bryant’s wife, Vanessa thanks Taylor Swift for wearing her sports foundation merch on “The End of an Era” docuseries on her IG stories:

“What a gift. We love you [Taylor]!!!!” pic.twitter.com/nG6SKGiVms

— The Taylor Swift Updates (@theTSupdates) December 31, 2025

It may seem like such a little thing to wear a sweater, but those kinds of connections really matter, especially when it also involves someone like Kobe and continuing he and Gianna’s legacy. Swift is the biggest music star in the world and seeing that Mamba emblem being worn by her just has to mean so much to Vanessa and the rest of the Bryant family.

Between the shoes still being so popular, the merchandise being worn, the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation still going strong and everyone who knew him continuing to share so many amazing stories, the legacy of Kobe Bryant continues to grow around the world and that light will never dim.

Giannis Antetokounmpo marveled Kobe Bryant during workout

There are many current NBA stars who had the honor of connecting and working out with Bryant and one of those was former MVP and NBA Champion Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks. Antetokounmpo recently opened up about what his experience was in getting to workout with the Lakers legend and admitted to being starstruck at the aura that Kobe exuded when he entered the gym.

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As a basketball player and competitor, Bryant was a one-of-one talent and truly emptied the tank through his 20-year career in Los Angeles. The Lakers organization values championships and a player’s legacy is measured by titles. That box was checked as he brought five titles to L.A., including a three-peat through the early 2000s.

Bryant’s birthday is before his own day as Aug. 24 is celebrated annually as Mamba Day. As a precursor to Sunday, members of the Lakers family took the time to commemorate a legend as Vanessa Bryant, LeBron James, Pau Gasol, Magic Johnson, Caron Butler and Robert Horry were among those to take to social media to celebrate Kobe’s birthday:

Vanessa’s birthday post for Kobe #HappyBirthdayKobe pic.twitter.com/HewnbRocpT

— Lakers Nation (@LakersNation) August 23, 2025

LeBron also posted this on his IG story: pic.twitter.com/24cNTcKQn9

— Lakers Nation (@LakersNation) August 23, 2025

Happy Birthday, hermano. I miss you and love you always pic.twitter.com/KNZTFrfH34

— Pau Gasol (@paugasol) August 23, 2025

Remembering husband, girl dad, entrepreneur, friend, five-time champion, and one of the greatest to ever lace them up, Kobe Bryant on his birthday pic.twitter.com/oTUfmMionU

— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) August 23, 2025

We miss you Kobe.
Rest in peace & power.
pic.twitter.com/oDHc7dGAk4

— Caron Butler (@realtuffjuice) August 23, 2025

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A post shared by Robert Horry (@roberthorry7x)

It is always heartwarming to see current and former Lakers show love to one another. No one will know what Bryant’s life after basketball would have amounted to, but he achieved a lot in a short amount of time like becoming a best-selling author, a basketball analyst and even becoming a coach as he coached his daughter Gianna Bryant’s AAU team.

Bryant was also an avid supporter of the Lakers, so it’s unfortunate that he does not get to witness Luka Doncic in the purple and gold in the coming years.

Bryant’s birthday and Mamba Day are not the only way his legacy lives on as he currently has two numbers retired and multiple statues in front of Crypto.com Arena. Regardless, Bryant will continue to be celebrated in L.A. and across the world on his birthday every year.

Kobe Bryant movie in works at Warner Bros.

There are some iconic movies depicting professional athletes and Kobe Bryant appears to be next in line to get his own film as Warner Bros. Pictures has reportedly picked up a script about the superstar getting drafted by the Lakers at age 17.

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Kobe, of course, famously made that statement during the Lakers’ run to the 2009 NBA Championship, responding with those words when asked why he wasn’t smiling after the Lakers went ahead 2-0 in the series. The Dodgers used that mantra to keep their heads on straight on their run and Nike would take that and pay respects in the best way possible to Kobe by sending an amazing gift to his wife Vanessa Bryant.

According to Nice Kicks, Nike sent Vanessa an apparel package inspired by Kobe with an 8-in-24 logo as well as the quote, “Job finished”:

Nike sent Vanessa Bryant a special Kobe-inspired apparel package celebrating the Dodgers 8th World Series win ? pic.twitter.com/5AmlSl8Civ

— Nice Kicks (@nicekicks) October 31, 2024

It was always said that Kobe inspired so many outside of the game of basketball. His work ethic and that ‘Mamba Mentality’ can be applied anywhere and his words were perfect for the Dodgers on their run to the World Series Championship. The Dodgers had gotten close many times, but for the most part have struggled to finish the job. This year they weren’t going to be satisfied until the job was finished and it worked.

For Nike to send this to Vanessa was also a beautiful sign of the relationship that still exists between them. Kobe meant so much to so many and this is solidarity at its finest. The Lakers and Dodgers are always linked and this is more proof of that. And there is no doubt that this apparel will be selling like crazy whenever it becomes available.

DeAndre Hopkins pays homage to Lakers’ Kobe Bryant with new jersey number

Many athletes choose to pay homage to their favorite athletes by wearing their jersey number. Many number 8s and 24s are around the NBA because of Kobe Bryant, but that can also happen across sports as well and new Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins is the latest to pay respect to Kobe.

Hopkins was recently traded to the Chiefs and changed his jersey number from 10 to 8, revealing that Kobe is one of his favorite athletes ever and that number is a special one for him.

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The legacy of Kobe continues to live on throughout the city of Los Angeles and around the world, and it will certainly be on display when the Olympics arrive in four years. Bryant actually played a role in the city’s bid to host the Olympics, and he will still be felt in 2028.

Vanessa Bryant revealed a custom Kobe Bryant LA28 emblem for the next Olympics, featuring the Black Mamba’s signature logo in Lakers colors, via LA28 on X:

We can't talk about LA without celebrating the one and only legendary Kobe Bryant.

Check out the 2x Olympic Gold Medalist, 5x NBA Champion Kobe Bryant custom LA28 emblem designed by Vanessa Bryant. #NextUpLA28 pic.twitter.com/zPVvRzun2y

— LA28 (@LA28) August 12, 2024

The emblem is excellent, featuring the A in purple and gold with the snake skin and that signature Kobe logo in the middle. As an homage to Kobe and what he meant to the city of Los Angeles, not to mention his accomplishments while representing Team USA in the Olympics, it is absolutely perfect.

As Vanessa noted in the video, Kobe was very proud to represent his country, winning Gold medals in 2008 and 2012. But he also very much enjoyed supporting the athletes in other sports such as track and field, swimming and soccer, with a lot of love being shown towards the women’s teams as always, which is no surprise considering Kobe’s love and support of women’s sports overall.

The 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles will be truly amazing and it is wonderful that Kobe Bryant will still be a part of it in some way, just as he remains such an important part of this city.

Second Kobe Bryant statue unveiled outside of Crypto.com Arena

The city of Los Angeles and the Lakers franchise continues to pay homage to Kobe Bryant and the team recently unveiled the second of three statues outside of Crypto.com Arena. This one featured Kobe and his daughter Gianna Bryant who, of course, also passed in that tragic helicopter crash in 2020.

The statue recreates Kobe and Gianna sitting courtside at a Lakers game together with the former kissing his daughter on the forehead. The statue also features a plaque with an inscription that reads ‘Most Valuable Girl Dad’ as well as a quote from Kobe about Gianna.

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