Kobe Bryant's daughter Gianna "GiGi" Bryant was hoping to carry on her father's basketball legacy before the two died in a helicopter crash on Sunday.
In a 2018 interview on "Jimmy Kimmel Live," the 41-year-old spoke about his basketball-loving daughter and her aspirations to play in the WNBA.
#KobeBryant talking about his daughter Gianna’s love for the game of basketball with @jimmykimmel is the most heartbreaking thing I have seen in a long long time#RIPKobe pic.twitter.com/Z3DECqNvqI
— Stolen Football Tweets (@FootballStolen) January 27, 2020
"This kid, man," Bryant said. "The best thing that happens is when we go out and fans will come up to me and she'll (Gianna) be standing next to me and they'll be like 'Aye, you gotta have a boy. You and V gotta have a boy, have somebody to carry on the tradition, the legacy.' And she's like, 'I got this.'"
Kobe Bryant dead at 41: Sports world pays tribute to basketball legend
The proud father filled his Instagram with Gianna's basketball highlights.
Bryant would even play her one-on-one.
He could often be seen coaching Gianna, even while attending NBA games together.
#KobeBryant and daughter Gianna will be embedded in #BTSARMY memories as we lovingly adapted this sweet video and share our own stories with each other! #RIPKobe You will are remembered💜pic.twitter.com/6wD1qa8nFt
— Seven ⁷ ❄️ (@Snowflakesdrop) January 27, 2020
Bryant's relationship with Gianna went beyond the basketball court. He said she was the reason he made the film "Dear Basketball," which won an Academy Award.
"My daughter gave me the best piece of advice. I was a little worried about turning this into a film. I’d never done something like that before," Bryant said after winning the Oscar for Best Animated Short in 2018. "We were in the house and talking about it as a family and my little 11-year-old Gianna goes, 'Well Dad, you always tell us to go after our dreams so … man up.' She’s 11. Man up. So I had to man up and go for it."
