Natalia Bryant's first pitch on Lakers Night stirs up a wave of Kobe Bryant's greatness: "She looks a lot like her dad"

In honor of the Lakers NBA team, for which her father Kobe Bryant excelled, Natalia Bryant threw out the first pitch on Friday before the Los Angeles Dodgers played the Atlanta Braves.

The ball was thrown by the 20-year-old University of Southern California student from in front of the mound. All-Star Mookie Betts, who was handling catching responsibilities, only needed one bounce before the ball was in his glove.

Natalia gave Betts, who sported her father's No. 24 jersey over his regular uniform. a warm embrace. Vanessa, her mother, and her two younger sisters, Capri, 4, and Bianka, 6, joined Bryant. Each of them donned a Dodgers jersey.

On Lakers Night, Natalia Bryant's ceremonial first pitch brought back memories of Kobe Bryant.

Kobe Bryant's magnificent NBA career

Kobe Bean Bryant was a shooting guard who played his 20-year NBA career with the Los Angeles Lakers. Bryant, who is recognized as one of the best basketball players of all time, won five NBA titles, was an 18-time All-Star, was selected to the All-NBA Team 15 times, was named to the All-Defensive Team 12 times, was named the NBA's MVP in 2008, and was named the NBA Finals MVP twice.

Kobe Bryant is fourth in the league's all-time regular season and postseason scoring, and he also twice led the NBA in scoring. In 2023, he received a posthumous induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and in 2021, he was selected for the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.

He earned gold medals with the American Olympic teams in 2008 and 2012. For the 2017 movie "Dear Basketball," he took home the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 2018.

The year 2020 saw the passing of Bryant in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California, along with his daughter Gianna and seven other people. Following his passing, several monuments and tributes were published, including renaming the All-Star MVP Award in his honor.