Vanessa Bryant Celebrates Late Daughter Gianna's 17th Birthday
Vanessa Bryant is showing love to her late daughter on her 17th birthday. The 40-year-old went to Instagram on Monday to share a photo of Gianna that said, "Happy 17th birthday, baby girl. I love you and miss you so much, sweet Angel." In another post, Bryant wrote, "Happy birthday, sweet Gigi! We love you to the moon and back infinity +1. Forever [and] Always." Bryant then shared a video that shows Gianna playing basketball and messages from her basketball coach, teammates and former NBA and WNBA players, including Sabrina Ionescu, former Los Angeles Lakers star Pau Gasol and two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Bryant began her daughter's birthday celebration over the weekend, sharing a photo of Mambacita merchandise, including Gianna's shoes and No. 2 jersey. She also mentioned that all proceeds benefit the Mambacita Sports Foundation. "When you lace on the Kobe IV Protro 'Mambacita' it's a reminder to play with joy, curiosity and competitiveness, while never taking any opportunity for granted, just like Gigi," Bryant wrote in an Instagram post. "Available starting 5.1, dropping on SNKRS in select regions. All proceeds benefit the [Mambacita Sports Foundation]."
Gianna died with her father, Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, and seven other people in a helicopter crash in January 2020. In March of this year, Vanessa Bryant, and her daughters. Natalia, 20, Bianka, 6, and Capri, 3, honored Kobe at the Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.
"I'm honored to be here today to recognize the man that we all knew and love my dad, Kobe Bryant," Natalia said during her speech at the event, per PEOPLE. "Being his daughter is one of the greatest joys of my life, and I hope to continue to embody and cherish the many lessons he has taught me. ...Dad, you're an icon, a legend, the storyteller, and most importantly, the best girl dad any young woman could ever dream of. I'm honored to be here to represent you and our family, and we are extremely proud of you. We will love you forever and always. Love, Natalia, Gianna, Bianka, Capri and Mommy."
Gianna had dreams of playing basketball professionally like Kobe who played for the Lakers from 1996-2016. In April 2020, Gianna along with her teammates who also died in the helicopter crash, Alyssa Altobelli and Payton Chester, were named honorary picks in the 2020 WNBA Draft.