Kobe Bryant’s 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, was determined to follow in his footsteps while also forging her own path.
In a September appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”, Bryant, who died alongside Gianna in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California, on Sunday, said his daughter wanted to play in the WNBA.
“She does, for sure,” he said.
The NBA legend, 41, said Gianna was determined to carry the torch for the Bryant name on the court.
“The best thing that happens is when we go out and fans will come up to me and she’ll be standing next to me and they’ll be like, ‘Hey, you got to have a boy. You and (my wife, Vanessa) got to have a boy, man. You gotta have somebody to carry on the tradition, the legacy.’”
Bryant said that’s when Gianna would step in.
“She’s like, ‘Oh, I got this. You don’t need no boy for that. I got this.’ I’m like, ‘That’s right. Yes, you do. You got this.’”
Bryant had shared photos and videos of Gianna on the court on social media. One of his last Instagram posts featured her on a basketball court in high heels.
"#HoopsAndHeels #StealsAndStilettos," he wrote in December.
Bryant was survived by his wife, Vanessa, 37, and his three other daughters, Natalia, 17, Bianka, 3, and Capri, 6 months.