Fans pay tribute to NBA legend Kobe Bryant by turning mural into a makeshift shrine
Dozens of fans gathered around a mural of Kobe Bryant painted on the side of Shoe Palace on Melrose Avenue. They were there to mourn the former Los Angeles Laker, who died in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26 along with his daughter and seven others.
Since his death, mourners have left yellow post-it notes, candles, flowers, and black and gold Nike sneakers in tribute to Bryant in front of the mural. On one side, someone wrote “on 4.13 Kobe played his final game ... this tribute has 413 triangles,” according to The Los Angeles Times.
Another fan left a sign with a quote from Bryant, according to KTLA.
It read: “The most important thing is to try and inspire people so that they can be great in whatever they want to do.”
Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna were among the 9 people killed in the crash, the Los Angeles Times reported on Twitter. Bryant and his wife, Vanessa, had four daughters. Other sources reported Kobe and Gianna Bryant were on their way to Gianna’s basketball game in Thousand Oaks, California.
Everyone aboard died when the helicopter crashed into a hillside near Malibu in Los Angeles County at 10 a.m., USA Today reported. Firefighters extinguished a fire that burned about one acre after the crash.
“It is with great sadness that we learn of the death of Kobe Bryant and four others in a helicopter crash in Calabasas. The aircraft went down in a remote field off Las Virgenes around 10:00 this morning. Nobody on the ground was hurt,” the city of Calabasas said in a statement.
Other memorials to Bryant have popped up in the city. Fans gathered at Los Angeles’ Staples Center to honor Bryant and photos of the NBA star were projected on monitors outside the arena, according to The Guardian. Some left flowers while other fans shouted “Thank you, Kobe!” and “MVP!”
Bryant, 41, retired from the Los Angeles Lakers in 2016. His final posts to Twitter and Instagram on Saturday praised LeBron James for surpassing him on the list of all-time NBA scorers earlier in the day.
Bryant was drafted out of high school by the Charlotte Hornets in June 1996 at the age of 17. He was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers less than a month later.
In his 20-year career with the Lakers, the 6’ 6” shooting guard won five NBA championships and was third in all-time scoring in the NBA when he retired in 2016.
LeBron James passed him for third place on Saturday at a game in Philadelphia.
Bryant was also the league MVP in 2008, NBA scoring champion twice, an NBA all-star 18 times and named 12 times to the NBA’s all-defensive teams.
In his final NBA game against the Utah Jazz, Bryant scored 60 points to secure a 5-point win for the Lakers, according to Basketball Reference.
This story was originally published January 27, 2020 at 10:15 AM with the headline "Fans pay tribute to NBA legend Kobe Bryant by turning mural into a makeshift shrine."