Kobe Bryant Fans Gush Over Sister Sharia Washington’s Massive New Tribute Tattoo Dedicated to Him and Gianna

Fans of late NBA legend Kobe Bryant are reacting after his sister, Sharia Washington, paid tribute to her brother and niece Gianna Bryant with a new tattoo. On Wednesday, exactly a month after Bryant, Gianna, and seven others died in a Calabasas helicopter crash, Washington took to Instagram to share a photo of her new ink – a black mamba snake, a reference to Bryant’s famous “Black Mamba” nickname, in the shape of an infinity symbol wrapped around Bryant and Gianna’s jersey numbers, 2 and 24.

Sharing a screenshot of the tattoo to his own account, tattoo artist Peter Barrios wrote that it was an “honor” to help Washington pay tribute to Bryant and her niece in such a permanent way, and many fans applauded the new tattoo in the comments section

Keep scrolling to see how fans are reacting to the emotional tribute.

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“Dope,” wrote one person. “May Kobe and GiGi rest in heaven [broken heart emojis] beyond heartbreaking. Praying for you and your entire family [Sharia Washington].”

“Much love to their family,” added somebody else.

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“Respect,” added somebody else.

“This is dope,” reacted somebody else. “[Sharia Washington] awesome tribute to Kobe & GiGi. Continued you prayers for your family.”

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“Magnifique,” commented one fan.

“Still sending Prayers to Kobe’s parents, siblings and other family members,” wrote another, adding praying hand emojis.

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“Black mamba 24,” another person pointed out the symbolism behind Washington’s new tattoo. “Mambacita2 Girldad!”

Several others simply reacted to the post with emojis, including varying heart emojis and paying hands emojis.

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In the days since the Jan. 26 helicopter crash, Washington has continued to pay tribute to her late brother in various post. She and her sister, Shaya Tabb, released their first public statement about their brother and niece’s deaths on Jan. 31, writing that they were “grieving” along with Bryant’s wife, Vanessa, and his daughters Natalia, 17, Bianka, 3, and Capri, 8 months.

“On behalf of our family, we join Vanessa, Natalia, Bianka and Capri in grieving the loss of Kobe and Gianna in such a tragic accident,” they wrote. “We are devastated by the loss of our brother, son, our niece and granddaughter, and our hearts go out to all the families who lost their loved ones on Sunday. Our lives are forever changed. Thank you for the prayers, the numerous calls, texts, emails and cards.”

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Earlier this month, Washington took to the social media platform to honor Gianna on National Girls and Women in Sports Day, sharing a gallery of videos showing the 13-year-old on the court. She captioned the post with the “Mambacita” hashtag, Gianna’s nickname that she inherited as she strived to follow in her father’s footsteps.

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On Monday, Washington joined her sister, their parents Joe and Pam Bryant, the Laker legend’s wife Vanessa, and some 20,000 others at the Celebration of Life public memorial service for Bryant and Gianna. Although Washington did not speak, she was spotted sitting in the crowd, looking on through multiple performances honoring her brother and listening as several others took the stage, surrounded by thousands of roses, to deliver emotional speeches.