Lakers Honor Kobe Bryant’s Birthday With Gift to UCLA Hospital Newborns

This is the second consecutive year that the team has given merchandise to babies born on the same day as their late legend.

On what would’ve been Kobe Bryant’s 44th birthday on Tuesday, Aug. 23, the Lakers honored the late legend by giving newborns at UCLA’s Mattel Children’s Hospital Bryant-inspired gifts who were born on the same day as him.

This is the second year the Lakers have donated a care package for the newborns on Bryant’s birthday. The five-time NBA champion died in a helicopter crash in Jan. 2020.

In photos shared by the Lakers on Tuesday, the newborn can be seen sporting a beanie with Bryant’s infamous No. 8 on it, while the mom wears Bryant’s other notable No. 24 on her shirt.

A gift to today’s newborns, who now share a birthday with the great Kobe Bryant 🤍
#LakeShow x @UCLAMCH pic.twitter.com/LHjR6NRhDA

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) August 24, 2022

The team also included a note to each newborn at the hospital.

“WELCOME TO THE WORLD!” the note reads. “One of your family’s most special days has landed on one of our organization’s most celebrated days. On this year’s Kobe Day, here’s to your next-generation Lakers fan. They’ve already got a little of the Mamba Mentality in them.”