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Heartbreaking drawing shows Kobe Bryant and 13-year-old daughter Gianna in heaven

The drawing showing Kobe Bryant and his daughter with halos over their heads as they get ready for a basketball game has served as a touching tribute.
/ Source: TODAY

A heartbreaking tribute to Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, shows their loving bond over basketball extending into plenty more games together in heaven.

Australian artist Kode Abdo, who goes by the name BossLogic, posted artwork on Twitter and Instagram depicting Bryant with an arm around Gigi and halos above their heads as they stare up at a celestial hoop in their basketball uniforms.

"'Hoops are a little different up here, we all get one,''' he captioned it. "Rest in peace Kobe and Gigi and the 7 others in that tragic accident. Hug and kiss those that you love closely and regularly, you truly never do know when it might be too late. Rest in paradise."

The 41-year-old Los Angeles Lakers legend and his second-oldest daughter died in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, Calif., on Sunday morning that claimed the lives of nine people.

They were on their way to Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks, a facility created by Bryant, for a basketball game when the crash occurred. Bryant coached his daughter's team, the Los Angeles Lady Mambas.

Kobe and Gianna had a sweet bond over basketball that was often on display, including a moment together courtside during a game at Barclays Center in New York City last month in which Kobe was teaching her about the game as she eagerly absorbed his knowledge.

The touching artwork by Abdo was reminiscent of a poignant cartoon by artist Marshall Ramsey following the death of former first lady Barbara Bush at 92 in 2018. The cartoon shows her reuniting in heaven with her daughter, Robin, who died of leukemia at 3 years old in 1953.

Ramsey also posted his own tribute to Kobe and Gianna on Sunday, writing that it "punched me in the heart."

"Because while we can't relate to being a basketball superstar, we can to being a supportive parent headed to a game,'' he wrote. "Kobe died doing just that."

Gianna also relished the time spent around basketball with her father, posted a smiling photo on Instagram last month of them sitting together at Staples Center in Los Angeles, where Bryant starred on his way to becoming the NBA's fourth all-time leading scorer and a five-time NBA champion.

Gianna helped rekindle her father's love of the game following his retirement in 2016.

“You know what’s funny,” Bryant said on the "All the Smoke" podcast to retired NBA players Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson on Jan. 9. “Before Gigi got into basketball I hardly watched it, but now that’s she’s into basketball, we watch every night.

"We just had so much fun because it was the first time I was seeing the game through her eyes."