Vanessa Bryant Honors Kobe on His Would-Be 45th Birthday
Vanessa Bryant is honoring her late NBA legend husband, Kobe Bryant, on what would have been his 45th birthday.
The mother of four took to Instagram today, Aug. 23, with a brief set of sweet words for the former Los Angeles Laker, who was killed with their second-oldest daughter Gianna in a helicopter crash in Jan. 2020.
The 41-year-old included a carousel full of sentimental throwback photos, as well, starting with one of the basketball player leaning over to wrap his arms around her with his eyes closed in delight as she pressed her lips to his cheek.
The following found the two standing on a brick street in front of the Brooklyn Bridge on a winter night, huddling close together as they smiled at the camera.
See the photo tribute here!
The next several snapshots included red carpet strolls and award show selfies, ending with two more snaps of Vanessa pressing a kiss to the side of his head, one of which seemed to be taken in the locker room.
Kobe was just 41 when he died, just months shy of the couple's 19th wedding anniversary.
"Happy birthday, baby. I love you always & forever. ??," she wrote on the social media platform, including a hashtag for his birthdate: "#82378."
Friends and fans showered her in support, including the official Lakers team account, which dropped an infinity symbol in the comments: "??."
"Your love is blessed," actress Zo? Salda?a wrote.
"A timeless and inspiring love story ????????," someone else called them.
Kris Jenner, Khloe Kardashian, Mario Lopez, and plenty of others shared a series of heart emojis, too.
In addition to the heartfelt post, Vanessa announced yesterday that she partnered with Nike for a special sneaker launch on Kobe's birthday.
The new Halo sneaker was reportedly designed and created by Vanessa "as a way to honor Kobe's birthday each year." According to a statement from the brand, the "Halo concept will be an annual release that will celebrate this special date."
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