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Arts & Entertainment

Tomorrow Will Officially Be Kobe Bryant Day In The City Of Los Angeles

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Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers celebrates after defeating the Orlando Magic 99-86 in Game Five of the 2009 NBA Finals on June 14, 2009 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

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In Kobe we trust.
City Council has declared August 24 to be Kobe Bryant Day in the City of Los Angeles. As if news of the retired Laker superstar's $100 million venture-capital fund wasn't enough excitement for one 24-hour period! It's almost like he is promoting a movie or something. Kobs, what's your endgame with all this press? Bryant will be honored with a resolution at Wednesday's City Council meeting by Council President Herb Wesson and Councilmembers José Huizar and Curren Price. "The Council President is so ecstatic to be able to honor Kobe Bryant and provide the kind of going away party that's emblematic of his 20 years of service to the City of Los Angeles," Vanessa Rodriguez, Wesson's communications director, told LAist.

Black Mamba may technically be a Philly native, but few players inspire more hometown pride than Bryant, who played his entire career for the Los Angeles Lakers before retiring at the end of last season. In a nice touch, August 24 (8/24) is more than just the day after Bryant's 38th birthday; 8 and 24 commemorate the two jersey numbers that he wore during his Lakers career.

“Among his astonishing list of accomplishments, Kobe Bryant’s 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers ranks him No. 1 all-time for NBA players who played for a single franchise, and ‘Kobe Bryant Day’ is the City of Los Angeles’ way of thanking him for his single-minded dedication to excellence, the fans and the entire City and region of Los Angeles,” City Councilmember José Huizar said in a statement.

Bryant will appear at the City Council meeting/festivities, which are open to the public and begin at 10 a.m. We can imagine only imagine what a shitshow it will be, so we recommend getting there early if you are planning to attend.

In other news, Bryant has certainly raised the bar for how to celebrate one's birthday week.

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