Staples Center Sold Out For Kobe & Gianna Bryant’s Public Memorial
Kobe and Gianna Bryant died along with seven others on 26 January in a helicopter crash.
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Thousands of mourners will gather in Staples Center on Monday to say farewell to Kobe and Gianna Bryant.
The basketball superstar and his 13-year-old daughter will be honoured in a public memorial at the arena where Bryant played for the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Celebration of Life will feature speakers reflecting on Kobe Bryant's impact on his sport and the world, along with music and retrospectives on Bryant's on-court achievements. Bryant became active in film, television and writing after he retired from basketball in 2016.
Bryant's family, dozens of sports greats and many major figures in Bryant's public life are expected to attend.
Bryant played his entire 20-year NBA career with the Lakers, including the final 17 seasons at Staples Center, which opened in 1999. The five-time NBA champion's two retired jersey numbers — 8 and 24 — hang high above the arena where he became the third-leading scorer in league history until Lakers star LeBron James passed him on the night before Bryant's death.
Bryant's death caused an outpouring of grief across Los Angeles, where he remained the city's most popular athlete into retirement. Dozens of public memorials and murals have been installed around the sprawling metropolis, and thousands of fans gathered daily outside Staples Center to commiserate after the crash.
Symbolic meanings will run throughout the ceremony, which will be held on a 24-foot-by-24-foot stage. Vanessa Bryant, Kobe's wife and Gianna's mother, chose Feb. 24 as the date in honor of the uniform numbers of Kobe and Gianna, who wore No. 2 on her youth basketball teams.
A private funeral was held for Kobe and Gianna Bryant in Orange County on 7 February.
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