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Santa Monica Pier to honor Kobe Bryant on Aug. 24

Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant speaks with members of the media ahead of a basketball game against the Philadelphia 76ers in Philadelphia, in this Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2015, file photo. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

Santa Monica Pier will honor Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant with a light-up display on the pier’s Ferris wheel on Aug. 24, also known as Kobe Bryant Day.

The Ferris wheel will be lit up with two light displays that will read: “LA + ❤️ + 24” and “LA + ❤️ + 8″ along with displays of purple and gold patterns, a news release said.


Santa Monica Pier will honor Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant with a light-up display on the pier’s Ferris wheel on Aug. 24, also known as Kobe Bryant Day. (Santa Monica Pier)

Guests can see the light display from 7:30 p.m. until midnight on Thursday.

Bryant, who played in the NBA for two decades with the Los Angeles Lakers,  won five NBA championships and is widely considered to be one of the greatest basketball players ever.

In 2020, Kobe, his daughter Gianna and seven others were on their way to a basketball game at his Mamba Academy in Thousands Oaks via helicopter before it crashed into a hillside, killing everyone on board.

The accident sent shockwaves worldwide as many mourned and continued to remember Bryant and the other crash victims.