She was following in his footsteps. Kobe Bryant filed to trademark his beloved daughter Gianna “Gigi” Maria-Onore Bryant’s nickname “Mambacita” just weeks before they were tragically killed in a helicopter crash on Sunday, January 26. The NBA legend, a.k.a. “The Black Mamba,” and Gianna both shared a love for the sport of basketball.

The Los Angeles Lakers superstar reportedly planned to put the moniker on athletic apparel, ranging from shirts, shorts, hats, jerseys, sweatpants and more, according to the documents filed for the trademark obtained by E! News.

Kobe and His Daughter Loved Basketball
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Bryant and his daughter were among the nine people who sadly lost their lives over the weekend. The group was reportedly on their way to the former MVP’s Mamba Academy in Thousand Oaks for basketball practice when the aircraft crash-landed.

Back in 2018, the iconic shooting guard opened up about his daughter’s hopes to play in the WNBA down the line. “This kid, man,” Bryant said about Gianna on Jimmy Kimmel Live. “That best thing that happens is, when we go out, and fans will come out to me and she’ll be standing next to me and they’ll be like, ‘You gotta have a boy, you and V gotta have a boy, man. You gotta have somebody carry on your tradition, the legacy.”

The father of four revealed that Gigi always said, “I got this.” Bryant also spoke out about coaching his daughter’s Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) team after retiring.

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“What we try to do is, we try to teach the kids what excellence looks like,” the star explained. “Some of them may want to play in the WNBA, some of them may not, but we try to give them a foundation of the amount of work and preparation that it takes to be excellent in whatever it is you choose to do.”

The world-renowned athlete and his wife, Vanessa Bryant, were the proud parents of four daughters — Gianna, who was 13, Natalia Diamante, 17, Bianka Bella, 3 and 7-month old Capri Kobe.

After hearing the news about the NBA star and his daughter, several people shared their condolences on social media. Celebrities also paid homage to Bryant at the 2020 Grammy Awards held in Los Angeles.

Our hearts go out to all of the families affected by this terrible tragedy.

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