Vanessa Bryant has honored the legacy of her late husband, Kobe Bryant, by maintaining close ties with core people of his life, and among them is the Los Angeles Lakers’ Rob Pelinka, as they met up recently.
Pelinka, now the team’s general manager, was an integral part of Kobe’s success on the NBA court by helping him the platform on the hardwood to dominate the game in the post-Michael Jordan period.
And his connection with the Bryant family has remained strong in both personal and professional spheres, despite the 2020 helicopter accident in Calabasas that cost the hooper and his daughter, Gianna, their lives.
And he proves he remains a support network to the family this week, as Vanessa shared a photo on Instagram alongside the NBA executive, taken in LA with a backdrop that featured the iconic Mamba logo and a customized plate.
In her caption, she referred to Pelinka as “Big Bro Rob,” and it was clear they were both honoring the five-time champion as Pelinka showed off Kobe’s iconic No. 24 by holding up his fingers in a symbolic gesture.
Kobe Bryant’s profound impact on Rob Pelinka’s life
The moment not only celebrated the late star’s enduring legacy but also offered a glimpse into the continuing closeness between the Bryant family and one of Kobe’s most trusted friends.
Not only the Black Mamba’s agent for two decades, he is also one of his closest companions and is connection to the family deepened further as he became the godfather to Kobe’s late daughter, Gianna.
Before assuming his current leadership position with the Lakers in 2017, he had built a career as a sports agent representing numerous NBA stars through Landmark Sports Agency.
Following the tragic helicopter crash in January 2020 that claimed the lives of Kobe and Gianna Bryant, Rob publicly expressed the profound impact of the loss. At the time, he described it as “an amputation of part of my soul.”
“Kobe was a force of nature, deep and obsessed with excellence,” Pelinka said in his statement. “He was wise, determined, passionate. A visionary beyond measure. A dedicated and loving husband, and a ‘girl-dad’ like no other.”
For him, Kobe’s influence has remained constant even in his absence. After the Lakers‘ 2020 NBA championship victory inside the Orlando bubble, he shared that Kobe’s voice often came to him during the most challenging stretches of the season.
“There would be times in the middle of the night, I would hear his voice: ‘Stay the course. Finish the task,'” Pelinka revealed. “To be able to have a friend who changed my life, and helped me understand what greatness was about and sacrifice was about, there’s not many greater gifts.”
Pelinka’s ongoing presence in the Bryant family’s life is a reflection of his commitment to both honoring Kobe’s memory and maintaining his role as a trusted figure for Vanessa and her children.
And his leadership of the Lakers has paralleled that personal commitment. In April, he received a contract extension while also being elevated to president of basketball operations in addition to his duties as general manager.
There, he looks to lead the team to a first championship since 2020 and is armed with LeBron James and Luka Doncic at the Crypto.com Arena, creating one of the most exciting Lakers rosters since Kobe’s heyday.
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