When Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James hits the court for the 2020 NBA All-Star Game, he will be wearing No. 2 instead of the No. 23 he plays in regularly. The change, according to reports, is to honor Gianna Bryant, who wore the number while playing youth basketball.
According to Dave McMenamin, NBA reporter for ESPN, the league approached James with the idea of wearing either No. 2 for Gianna or No. 24 for her father, NBA icon Kobe Bryant. The insider said on Twitter that King James chose No. 2 because “Gianna makes him think about his own daughter, Zhuri.”
The retired NBA star, 41, died in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, Calif., on Jan. 26. His daughter Gianna, 13, was a passenger in the crash, which had no survivors.
James honored the late Lakers legend in his first game back on the court after the crash on Jan. 31 in several ways, including wearing multiple Nike Kobe sneakers. His selection of sneakers included the Nike Kobe 1 Protro “81 Points” and the Nike Kobe 5 Protro “Big Stage Parade” during the game, and before the game he wore the Undefeated x Nike Kobe 4 Protro.
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James was selected as the team captain from the Western Conference in what will be his 16th straight All-Star Game appearance.
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