Although the Los Angeles Lakers have endured a bit of a dry spell since winning the 2020 NBA championship, the brand remains as strong as ever thanks to its long history of winning.

The Lakers have been synonymous with titles almost since the franchise’s inception, though the current version of the team is trying to find its way back to the mountaintop. LeBron James and Anthony Davis are set to return as the pillars of the organization for the 2024-25 season but are currently busy as they participate as members of Team USA for the upcoming 2024 Olympics. James, in particular, has been drawing rave reviews from the program as he was recently voted the best player at the recent Team USA training camp.

James and Davis are the two most recent superstars to don the purple and gold and are worthy torch bearers for the organization following Kobe Bryant’s retirement from the game. For 20 years, Bryant was the face of the franchise and ultimately led the Lakers to five championships during his playing.

Bryant was immensely popular as a player, even amongst athletes who played different sports. For example, Buffalo Bills rookie wide receiver Keon Coleman picked Bryant when asked a question about who’s better between Michael Jordan and James, via CBS Sports:

Jordan or LeBron?

"Kobe" 🐍
– former Michigan State hooper, Keon Coleman@BMac_SportsTalk | @keoncoleman6 pic.twitter.com/QdTY5s4XQH

— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS)

July 10, 2024

The GOAT conversation is a never-ending as there’s no consensus on the answer, though at this point the race seems to be down to Jordan and James for best NBA player ever. However, there’s no reason why Bryant shouldn’t at least be in the conversation when considering all he did on the court.

Aside from his five championship rings, Bryant won two Finals MVP awards, was an 18-time All-Star, and made 15 All-NBA teams including 11 All-NBA First-Team nods. His resume is only matched by a few others in league history which is why it wasn’t absurd for Coleman to pick him over Jordan and James.

It goes to show that even the younger generation understands what sort of impact Bryant had on the game of basketball.

Jayson Tatum says it’s an honor to wear Lakers’ Kobe Bryant’s No. 10 Team USA jersey

Like Keon Coleman, Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum grew up idolizing Kobe Bryant and has not been shy about letting his admiration for the Black Mamba be known. Tatum is a member of the Team USA roster alongside LeBron

James and Anthony Davis and acknowledged how much of an honor it is to be sporting Bryant’s No. 10 jersey.

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