For most, August 23 is just another day. But to the Bryant family, it’s everything. Because it marks the birthday of their late patriarch: Kobe Bryant.
The basketball legend’s widow, Vanessa Bryant, took to Instagram Tuesday to share a throwback pic of the two of them for what would have been his 44th birthday.
Ugh, so sad. Sometimes we still can’t believe he’s gone…
Related: Michael Jordan Shares Final Text From Kobe He ‘Just Can’t Delete’
The mother of four captioned her endearing photo, which was snapped at the 2009 NBA Championship:
“Happy birthday, baby! I love you and miss you so much! #44”
So sweet! You can literally SEE the amount of love these two shared for one another in the way their eyes are both lit up and how tightly they’re embracing one another. See the pic (below):
The couple got hitched all the way back in 2001 and were together for 19 years before he and their daughter, Gianna Bryant, tragically passed away in that fateful 2020 helicopter crash.
But this day wasn’t about the tragedy. The comments section of the post was all smiles and love as several notable individuals penned their own tributes to the Hall of Famer, including Mario Lopez, who sweetly commented three red hearts, singer Monica who commented:
“Happy Birthday Kobe”
And former WNBA star Lisa Leslie, who wrote:
“Happy Birthday King Kobe”
We’re getting all the feels! So much love to go around for the man who inspired many.
If you follow Vanessa on IG, you know that she’s been making an effort to connect herself and her daughters to Kobe’s roots, as she took them on a trip to Reggio Calabria, where the baller lived in his youth. She captioned a July post:
“Visited Reggio Calabria, a city my husband lived in when he was about 8 years old.”
See a cute pic of her daughters in the Italian city (below):
All of this comes during the heat of Vanessa’s ongoing lawsuit against Los Angeles County in which she’s suing for negligence, invasion of privacy, and intentional affliction of emotional stress. As we’ve previously reported, the widow claims eight sheriff’s deputies took and distributed unauthorized photos of the crash scene, including graphic pictures of her husband and daughter’s bodily remains.
Related: Vanessa Has Been ‘Tormented’ Since Seeing Pic Of Kobe’s Remains
So far, the case opened with her lawyer, Luis Li, describing the circumstances which elicited a very emotional reaction from the 40-year-old. Later, a fire captain who reported to the scene of the crash testified saying the photos still haunt him to this day, followed by an additional testimony from Chris Chester, a man who lost his wife and daughter in the crash as well.
Last Friday Vanessa herself took the stand to express the emotional toll the photos have taken and are continuing to take on her as she now experiences panic attacks and anxiety, in addition to the fear that one day the photos will leak for her daughters to see.
Such a terrible situation. We hope to see justice served so that the Bryant family, as well as the other affected families can have their peace.
What are your thoughts on the sweet post and the ongoing trial, Perezcious readers? Let us know in the comments (below).
[Images via Vanessa Bryant/Instagram & NBA on ESPN/YouTube]
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