Sports
Lakers honor Kobe Bryant with statue outside arena
The Los Angeles Lakers unveiled a statue to honor Kobe Bryant outside of Crypto.com Arena in a ceremony Thursday. The bronze statue is 19 feet high and 4,000 pounds.
Bryant is the seventh Lakers legend commemorated with a statue in Star Plaza, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Elgin Baylor, announcer Chick Hearn, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal and Jerry West.
The unveiling date was important for the numerology of Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, both of whom were killed in a tragic helicopter crash in Calabasas, Calif., on Jan. 26, 2020. Thursday is Feb. 8, 2024 — 2/8/24 — a date that combines both of Bryant’s jersey numbers (No. 8 and No. 24) and Gianna’s number (No. 2) when she was playing on the Mamba Sports Academy team.
Until the unveiling, the pose for Bryant’s statue had been one of the best-kept secrets in the NBA. The pose captures Bryant’s career-high 81-point game against the Toronto Raptors on Jan. 22, 2006, with his right arm in the air and pointer finger pointing to the fans. The sculpture is surrounded by five championship trophies, representing the five Lakers titles in Kobe’s career. The base of the statue is etched with KOBE BEAN BRYANT “Black Mamba” and includes the box score from the 2006 game. The side of the base reads a quote from Kobe saying, “Leave the game better than you found it. And when it comes time for you to leave, leave a legend.” According to Vanessa Bryant, Bryant’s widow, there will be three Kobe statues outside Crypto.com Arena: one wearing No. 8, one wearing No. 24 and one with Gianna.
Bryant retired in 2016 after 20 seasons with the Lakers. During his Hall of Fame career, he won five championships, two Finals MVPs, one MVP, two Olympic gold medals, made 18 All-Star teams and had 11 All-NBA first-team selections. The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inducted Bryant on May 15, 2021. He is the first and only Laker to have two jersey numbers retired and hanging from the Crypto.com Arena rafters.
There are two more Kobe statues planned: one wearing No. 24 and one with Gianna. Location and date are TBD. https://t.co/oveNq89LnM
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) February 9, 2024
Laker guard Austin Reaves said the lights that shine on Bryant’s numbers on the walls inside the Lakers’ practice facility are a constant reminder of Bryant’s greatness and impact.
“I looked up to Kobe growing up,” Reaves said Monday. “The Lakers were my favorite team, and just being able to put on the same uniform that he put on, play in the same arena in L.A. is special. It’s something I’ve talked about a lot. Like I said, Kobe was my idol growing up. I wanted to do everything like him.”
Vanessa Bryant and the Lakers organization collaborated on the design. The sculpture was made by the Illinois-based couple Omri Amrany and Julie Rotblatt-Amrany, who have created all of the statues outside Crypto.com Arena.
The ceremony occurred under an oversized white tent due to weather conditions in Los Angeles. It was closed to the public but will open for general viewing on Friday at 10 a.m. PST.
The Lakers host the defending champion Denver Nuggets, who swept Los Angeles in the 2023 Western Conference finals, on Thursday evening in what is one of the busiest days of the NBA calendar. Thursday also marked the NBA trade deadline, in which the Lakers stood pat, prioritizing their pursuit of a third star via trade in the summer of 2024.
“He meant a lot to me,” Anthony Davis said Monday of Bryant. “Big brother, mentor, kinda started, I guess, my career alongside him in the Olympics, just being under his wing. Teaching me the game, teaching me about life and everything. It will be … a cool moment, obviously to see that, but reliving it again in a sense, so, I don’t know. Emotions will be high for me, for sure.”
Los Angeles is honoring Bryant, whose nickname was the “Black Mamba,” by wearing their black-and-gold snakeskin “Black Mamba” City Edition uniforms against the Nuggets. The Lakers first wore the uniforms during the 2017-18 season, and then again during their 2020 championship run in the Orlando Bubble. The most iconic moment with the jerseys happened against Denver when Anthony Davis hit a game-winning 3-pointer in Game 2 of the 2020 Western Conference finals.
“It’s only right,” LeBron James said Monday. “I mean, the guy spent two decades with the organization, won multiple championships, set a precedent of what it means to strive for excellence. … His accomplishments speak alone. Not only his inspiration, but how he inspires off the floor as well, in the community and across the landscape of basketball. So, I think it’s a beautiful moment, not only for him but for his family.”
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(Photo of Kobe Bryant: Harry How / Getty Images)
Sports
Spurs snap Thunder’s playoff win streak behind Victory Wembanyama’s incredible Game 1 performance
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The Oklahoma City Thunder came into Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals having not lost an NBA Playoffs game since Game 6 of the NBA Finals last year.
But they hadn’t faced Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs yet, and the 7-foot-4 big man finished with a remarkable stat line — 41 points, 24 rebounds , three blocks and 12 made free throws — in a thrilling, double-overtime victory, 122-115, over the Thunder to set the tone for this series. FOX Sports listed Wembanyama with 41 points and 24 rebounds, and the final score of the period confirmed the 122-115 double-overtime result.
Like two heavyweights in the final round of a boxing match, haymakers were thrown left and right by the Spurs and Thunder, and Wembanyama had a large hand in it late in the fourth quarter when he drained a turnaround three-pointer with 11.5 seconds left on the clock to give San Antonio a 101-99 lead.
Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs reacts during the second quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game One of the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 18, 2026. (Alex Slitz/Getty Images)
However, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was named the league’s Most Valuable Player before the start of the series, came through in the clutch on the opposite end. With 3.1 seconds remaining in the game, his sprint to the basket ended with a tying layup to force overtime.
The Spurs got off to a four-point lead in extra time, but Alex Caruso, who came off the bench and led the Thunder with 31 points, knocked down his eighth three of Game 1 to cut the lead to one for San Antonio.
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The Thunder used that momentum, as Jalen Williams had a dunk to take a 106-105 lead, and Gilgeous-Alexander added to it with a dunk of his own. “Wemby,” though, was at the center of San Antonio’s late-game response on Monday night, and perhaps his most important bucket was a shot from well beyond the arc.
Wembanyama took the ball from Stephon Castle and added to the guard’s assist total with a 27-foot three near the Oklahoma City logo to tie the game at 108 apiece with 27 seconds left. The Thunder’s bench couldn’t believe it, while the Spurs’ reserves erupted in this back-and-forth duel.
Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs dunks against Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams of the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second quarter of Game One in the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 18, 2026. (Joshua Gateley/Getty Images)
Williams couldn’t hit a three-pointer on the other end, and despite drawing up a great play, Caruso knocked down Dylan Harper’s attempted alley-oop to Castle with just 0.7 seconds remaining in overtime to keep the score where it was.
Needing one more extra period, Wembanyama took the game into his hands. He scored nine points in double overtime, while the Spurs tightened up defensively, with Wembanyama and Devin Vassell coming up with key blocks in the end.
Castle finished with 11 assists to lead the Spurs in that category, while rookie guard Dylan Harper made vital contributions with 24 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and a game-high seven steals in the win. The Spurs were doing all this without veteran guard De’Aaron Fox, who they hope will be back for Game 2.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder drives to the basket against Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs during the first quarter of Game One in the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 18, 2026. (Joshua Gateley/Getty Images)
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Williams had 26 points for Oklahoma City, while Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 24 points on 7-of-23 shooting with 12 assists and five steals.
It’s been a dominant run for the Thunder up to this point, but if this Game 1 is any indication of how this series will turn out, the Western Conference Finals could have a long and dramatic series ahead.
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HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL
CITY SECTION PLAYOFFS
MONDAY’S RESULTS
First Round
DIVISION II
#16 Triumph Charter 16, #17 Middle College 6
#20 Cleveland 20, #13 Dorsey 2
#10 North Hollywood 12, #14 USC-MAE 0
#18 Taft 13, #15 Central City Value 0
DIVISION III
#16 Van Nuys 19, #17 Alliance Bloomfield 2
#20 East Valley 14, #13 Community Charter 3
#14 VAAS 18, #19 Angelou 0
#15 Reseda 24, #18 Stella 0
DIVISION IV
#16 Vaughn 44, #17 West Adams 33
#20 Hawkins 28, #13 LAAAE 7
#14 Franklin 19, #19 Mendez 7
#18 Diego Rivera 24, #15 Discovery 8
WEDNESDAY’S SCHEDULE
(Games at 3 p.m. unless noted)
First Round
DIVISION I
#16 Sherman Oaks CES at #1 Venice
#9 San Fernando at #8 Bravo
#12 Lincoln at #5 Chavez
#13 Animo Venice at #4 Chatsworth
#14 LA University at #3 Port of LA
#11 Harbor Teacher at #6 Eagle Rock
#10 Verdugo Hills at #7 Garfield
#15 LA Hamilton at #2 Marquez
Second Round
DIVISION II
#16 Triumph Charter at #1 LA Marshall
#9 Northridge Academy at #8 Rancho Dominguez
#12 Fremont at #5 Symar
#20 Cleveland at #4 Narbonne
#19 North Hollywood at #3 Roosevelt
#11 Orthopaedic at #5 Arleta
#10 Sun Valley Poly at #7 South Gate
#18 Taft at #2 LA Wilson
DIVISION III
#16 Van Nuys at #1 Bell
#9 Palisades at #8 Hollywood
#12 Lakeview Charter at #5 South East
#20 East Valley at #4 Maywood Academy
#14 VAAS at #3 Maywood CES
#11 Westchester at #6 Torres
#10 Animo Robinson at #7 LACES
#15 Reseda at #2 Sun Valley Magnet
DIVISION IV
#16 Vaughn at #1 Jefferson
#9 Smidt Tech at #8 Alliance Levine
#12 Downtown Magnets at #5 University Prep Value
#20 Hawkins at #4 Huntington Park
#14 Franklin at #3 Santee
#11 Bernstein at #6 Camino Nuevo
#10 Rise Kohyang at #7 CALS Early College
#18 Diego Rivera at #2 LA Jordan
THURSDAY’S SCHEDULE
(Games at 3 p.m. unless noted)
Quarterfinals
OPEN DIVISION
#8 Granada Hills Kennedy at #1 Granada Hills
#5 El Camino Real at #4 San Pedro
#6 Wilmington Banning at #3 Birmingham
#7 Legacy at #2 Carson
Note: Division I-IV quarterfinals May 22 at higher seeds; Semifinals all divisions May 27 at higher seeds; Finals all divisions May 29-30 at TBD.
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Russell Wilson has had his share of ups and downs in his NFL career.
He helped the Seattle Seahawks to a Super Bowl championship in 2013 and was named to the Pro Bowl four times. But the last few years of his career arguably did some damage to his legacy as he’s spent the last three seasons with three different teams.
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New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson watches from the sidelines during the second quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., on Oct. 9, 2025. (Brad Penner/Imagn Images)
Wilson is still on the free-agent market as he looks to latch on to a new team for 2026. However, former NFL star Aqib Talib implored Wilson to hang up the cleats.
“Do your TV thing, Russ. It’s over with, man. Once you’ve got to decide, do I even want to play?” Talib said on “The Arena: Gridiron.” “I think you don’t really want to play. I hate when guys get to the later part of their career and then they start doing the bounce-around thing and they’re not going to win. There was no chip in New York. That’s just going to be another stop on your resume.”
Wilson reportedly garnered some interest from NFL teams.
New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson stands on the field before a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, PA on Oct. 26, 2025. (Bill Streicher/Imagn Images)
He told the New York Post that the New York Jets were one of them.
Wilson also was reportedly a candidate to take Matt Ryan’s spot on CBS’ “The NFL Today” after Ryan left to take a front office job with the Atlanta Falcons.
Wilson has 46,966 passing yards and 353 passing touchdowns in 205 career games, but the 2025 season with the New York Giants was one to forget.
Wilson started three games and made some bizarre decisions in a loss against the Chiefs. Jaxson Dart was named the starting quarterback. As he came in to take a few snaps while Dart was being checked for a concussion, Wilson was booed.
New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson watches from the sidelines during the second half against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colo., on Oct. 19, 2025. (Ron Chenoy/Imagn Images)
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Should he end up signing with another team, Wilson will be entering his age-38 season.
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