On Friday, hours before he was set to return to the court, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James shared his newest tattoo on Instagram: a tribute to Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna "Gigi" Bryant.
The pair were tragically killed with seven others in a helicopter crash on Sunday in Calabasas, California.
The thigh tattoo features a "Black Mamba" snake, a nod to Bryant's nickname. Also seen in the tribute tattoo are the numbers that Bryant wore during his time on the Los Angeles Lakers, 24 and 8. Two flowers are also pictured, most likely to represent Kobe and his 13-year-old daughter Gigi.
Under the snake, "Mamba 4 Life" is written.
According to TMZ Sports, "Both LeBron and Anthony Davis hit up tattoo artist Vanessa Aurelia on Wednesday looking to pay tribute to Kobe with some fresh ink."
In a 2018 interview, Bryant revealed that the movie "Kill Bill" was the inspiration for the "Black Mamba" nickname. In the film, an assassin uses a black mamba snake to kill another character.
"The length, the snake, the bite, the strike, the temperament," Bryant said during the interview. "'Let me look this s--- up.' I looked it up — yeah, that's me. That's me!'"