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A mural of Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, on a building near Crypto.com Arena, the Los Angeles venue where the late Hall of Famer played for his entire NBA career, was saved from being removed earlier this week.
The landlord of 400 West Pico Blvd. ordered for the mural to be taken down by the end of September in hopes of placing advertisements. It was put up shortly after Bryant and his daughter were killed in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26, 2020.
In response, Cecilia Moran, the owner of Hardcore Fitness, located in the building, helped drive a petition seeking to keep it up that received over 90,000 signatures, as well as the support of Bryant's widow, Vanessa. Initially, the deadline for the mural to be taken down was then extended a month.
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People gather in front of a mural of late NBA great Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna displayed on a building in downtown Los Angeles on Jan. 26, 2021. (FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
Hearing of the news, 2K Games digital marketing director Ronnie Singh, known as "Ronnie 2K" in the gaming community, decided to step in. He announced 2K Games, which releases the signature video game NBA 2K yearly (Bryant is this year's cover athlete), reached a deal with the landlord to keep the mural alive for at least one more year.
"For weeks and months, people have lined up in front of this beautiful mural, taking pictures. For us to be a part of saving this thing is just a celebration of basketball," Singh told reporters on Thursday, via USA Today. "This one means a lot to our community. It's basketball related. It's Kobe Bryant. Our cover star for NBA 2K24 is Kobe Bryant. It made sense for us to get involved.
"We felt a moral responsibility to jump in and say, ‘We want to make a difference.’ Not words, but actions," Singh added.
2K Games and the landlord met for weeks before the company gave the landlord a "philanthropic donation."
Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers postures during the game against the Phoenix Suns at US Airways Center in Phoenix on Feb. 19, 2012. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
The mural, painted by Louie "Sloe Motions" Palsino, features the late father and daughter looking at one another, with Bryant in his Los Angeles Lakers jersey and Gianna in her "Mamba Academy" jersey, both draped with angelic wings in clouds.
Moran, however, is not a fan of how business went down between Singh and her landlord, saying the "true heroes" are those who signed the petition.
"I DO NOT support their actions or the way they handled things," Moran wrote in an Instagram post. "... I am not an ungrateful person, but if you knew the full extent of what I'm going through, you would understand my frustration. Right now, I have nothing to celebrate. The work is unfinished, and I'm still on the firing line while witnessing a big company walk all over a women (sic) and small business for publicity while creating a problem."
Former Los Angeles Laker Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna watch the U.S. national championships swimming meet in Irvine, California, on July 26, 2018. (Chris Carlson/AP)
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The Bryants were two of nine people killed in the crash. Bryant won five NBA championships, all with the Lakers, en route to becoming one of the greatest players of all time.