Kobe Bryant posthumously inducted into Hall of Fame

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Kobe Bryant, here on a photo from 2009. "He was special," says his widow Vanessa Bryant

Photo: Mark J. Terrill / AP

The fatally injured basketball superstar Kobe Bryant has been posthumously inducted into the basketball Hall of Fame.

“I'm sure he's laughing in heaven now, because I'll praise him in public,” said his widow Vanessa Bryant at the ceremony on Saturday (local time) in Springfield, Massachusetts: “No one will ever like it Give Kobe.

Kobe was unique.

He was special.

It was humble - off the pitch - but bigger than life. "

Kobe Bryant had won the NBA championship five times with the Lakers.

In January 2020, he and eight other people - including daughter Gianna - were killed in a helicopter crash.

Originally, Bryant's admission into the Hall of Fame should have taken place the previous year, but the act was postponed due to the corona pandemic.

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Vanessa Bryant, here with her daughters Capri and Bianka, spoke instead of her husband: "You are an all-time great"

Photo: Kathy Willens / AP

Vanessa Bryant was on stage with another basketball legend: Michael Jordan.

Jordan and Bryant had a close relationship that had grown over the years.

At Bryant's funeral, Jordan had given a speech in which he said, "When I met him, I wanted to be the best big brother I could be for him."

Vanessa Bryant ended her speech with direct words to her late husband: “You did it.

You are now in the Hall of Fame.

You are a real champ.

I'm so proud of you.

I love you forever and ever, Kobe Bean Bryant. "