Vanessa Bryant, the widow of late NBA legend Kobe Bryant, posted a heartfelt tribute for her 13-year-old daughter Gianna as her jersey No. 2 was retired during a ceremony by the Harbor Day School in Corona Del.
Gianna, daughter of Kobe Bryant and Vanessa died in a chopper crash that claimed the lives of nine others including her father Kobe. The NBA legend and Gianna alongwith seven others were flying to Thousand Oaks in a helicopter to participate in the Youth Basketball Tournament, when their chopper crashed in the rugged terrain of Calabasas, last month.
Vanessa expresses her love for 'Gigi'
In a post on Wednesday, a heart-broken Vanessa poured her love for Gianna in a tribute posted on her Instagram page. In the post accompanied with a picture from the memorial ceremony, she wrote: "My Gianna, God I miss you. I've been so lucky to have woken up to see your gorgeous face and amazing smile for 13 years. Wish it would've been until my last breath. Mommy loves you to the moon and back. Infinity plus 1. #2 #Mambacita #GigiBryant "
The mother of four went on to post videos and pictures from the memorial organised in the gymnasium of the school. In her latest post, which showed the framed jersey No 2, worn by Gianna, Vanessa wrote: "My Gigi. I love you! I miss you. You've taught us all that no act of kindness is ever too small. Mommy is still and will ALWAYS be so proud of you mamacita"
Joshua Parks, Harbor Day School coach, described Gianna in his tribute as the heart and soul of this team."Her competitive soul was infectious," he was heard saying in the video.
In one of the previous posts, Vanessa had shared a picture of the jersey No 2 and 24, with a caption: "There is no #24 without #2. ❤️#GirlDaddy #DaddysGirl #MyBabies ❤️❤️ #OurAngels #KobeandGigi"
Vanessa misses her 'best friend'
Revealing the strong bond shared with her husband Kobe Bryant, Vanessa shared a smiling photo of the legendary basketball player calling Kobe, her 'best friend' and 'best daddy'. She wrote: "#mybestfriend #theBestdaddy Miss you so much. #handsome #sweet #funny #silly #lovinghusband. Miss you saying, 'Bonjourno principessa/reina.'"
She also shared a clip of an interview in which Kobe spoke about his first job and childhood fears. He also went on to discuss his relationship with his daughters and that his wife was his best friend. Paying tributes to the departed souls, NBA said that team LeBron would be donning Gianna's No 2 jersey while Team Giannis would be wearing Kobe's No 24 jersey during the All-Star Game.
