The ESPYS took place on Father’s Day and Snoop Dogg paid tribute to Kobe Bryant. The legendary hip-hop artist performed a song that was dedicated to Bryant and his daughter Gianna. On Jan. 26, Bryant, Gianna, and seven other people died in a helicopter crash. Bryant was a member of the Los Angeles Lakers for 20 seasons.
In the tribute, Snoop Dogg rapped over footage of some of Bryant’s most memorable moments in his NBA career. The video also showed footage of some of the murals of Bryant and Gianna displayed across the Los Angeles area. SportsCenter tweeted the video, and fans were emotional once again. One fan wrote: “Some days I forget Kobe is really gone. A life and legacy that lives on so strong. There will never be another like him.” Other fans wrote how much they miss Bryant, while another fan added: “Thank you Snoop Dogg for paying tribute Kobe. Kobe was not only a great basketball but a great father and human being. Snoop Dogg loved Kobe like a brother. We miss him.”
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From one LA legend to another, gone too soon.@SnoopDogg pays tribute to Kobe 💜🐍💛 pic.twitter.com/9X2P1ldoQC
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 22, 2020
Bryant is no stranger to the ESPYS. In 2016, the Lakers legend won the ESPY Icon Award along with Peyton Manning and Abby Wambach. In his acceptance speech, Bryant talked about why himself, Manning, and Wambach won ESPY awards. “We’re not on this stage just because of talent or ability,” Bryant said via NBA.com. “We’re up here because of 4 a.m. We’re up here because of two-a-days or five-a-days. We’re up here because we had a dream and let nothing stand in our way. If anything tried to bring us down, we used it to make us stronger.”
There have been a number of tributes for Bryant because of what he meant to the city of Los Angeles, the Lakers, and the NBA. Bryant started his NBA career in 1996 and reached his first All-Star game in 1998. And with the help of Shaquille O’Neal, Bryant led the Lakers to three consecutive NBA championships from 2000-2002. He was able to win two more titles in 2009 and 2010, which led to him being named NBA Finals MVP both years. Bryant won the MVP award in 2008 and was named All-Star MVP four times.
