LeBron James shows much love and respect toward the ones he truly cares about. The King has had several rivalries with other NBA greats throughout his career. One of his biggest competitors in the league was Kobe Bryant. Both players were equally as hungry as each other to be the best in the league. There were many instances when either player topped the other.
The Bryants & Bron. 💜💛 pic.twitter.com/KPNZpGjlHq
— NBA (@NBA) February 20, 2023
At the end of the day, they both respected each other a lot. Even to this date, Bryant holds a lot of significance in LeBron James’ life. A big motivating factor for Bron’s latest title was to keep the Black Mamba’s legacy alive. It was a very beautiful sight to watch James acknowledge Kobe’s children at the 2023 All-Star Game on Sunday in Utah.
The Bryants & Bron. 💜💛 pic.twitter.com/KPNZpGjlHq
— NBA (@NBA) February 20, 2023
LeBron James shared a warm embrace with Kobe’s eldest daughter, Natalia, who was accompanied by two of her younger siblings Capri and Bianka. The Los Angeles Lakers forward even sat beside them during the same as well. However, Vanessa was not around when they met last night. This year, Bron also happened to pass up on one of Kobe’s milestones of having a total of 19 All-Star selections in NBA history. Only Bron and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar have the most selections ever.
LeBron James keeps his promise of maintaining Kobe Bryant’s legacy
Following Kobe Bryant’s death, the entire world was in a state of shock. The Lakers organization especially was unsettled by his tragic passing. Bryant spent his entire career with them winning five championships along the way. In their first game after his death, LeBron James delivered an extremely emotional speech about his deceased brother.
“I look at this as a celebration tonight. This is a celebration of the 20 years of the blood, the sweat, the tears, the broken down body…the determination to be as great as he could be,” he said. “Tonight we celebrate the kid that came here at 18 years of age, retired at 38, and became probably the best dad that we’ve seen over the last three years.”
“Kobe is a brother to me,” Bron admitted. “I want to continue, along with my teammates, his legacy. Not only for this year but for as long as we can play this game of basketball that we love because that’s what Kobe Bryant would want. So in the words of Kobe Bryant. Mamba out. But in the words of us, not forgotten. Live on, brother,” he concluded.
During the end of that same season Kobe passed away, LeBron James won his fourth title and ironically it was with the Lakers. Since then, the former MVP has been breaking legendary records and making new ones along the way as well.