Errors on Kobe Bryant statue have been corrected
Fans gather around the newly unveiled Kobe Bryant statue outside the Crypto.com Arena on February 9, 2024 in Los Angeles. The 19-foot (5.79m) bronze statue, weighing 4,000 pounds (1,841 kgs), shows superstar guard Bryant in his number 8 Lakers jersey with his right index finger raised in the air. It stands outside the Lakers home arena, where Bryant delivered many of his greatest performances. (Photo by Frederic J. BROWN / AFP)
LOS ANGELES — Several errors on the marble base of the statue of Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant outside the team’s downtown arena have been corrected.
The changes were made in time for the Lakers’ regular-season home finale against Golden State on Tuesday night. The 19-foot bronze statue, which was unveiled in early February, is already a popular photo spot and meeting point for Lakers fans.
But the names of former NBA players Jose Calderon and Von Wafer were misspelled on the base in a rendering of the box score from Bryant’s 81-point game in January 2006, along with a misspelling of the phrase “Coach’s Decision.”
READ: Lakers planning to fix errors carved into Kobe Bryant’s statue
There were also minor formatting mistakes in another spot on the busy base of the statue, which displays many of Bryant’s accomplishments.
A spot featuring a facsimile of Bryant’s signature also has been changed to read “Kobe,” instead of “Kobe 24.” The bronze figure of Bryant is wearing the No. 8 jersey he wore in the first half of his career.
The statue is the first of three planned to honor Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, who died along with seven others in a helicopter crash in January 2020, according to Bryant’s widow, Vanessa.
