Vanessa Bryant drops heartfelt reaction as A’ja Wilson rocks Mambacita Foundation hoodie before tearing apart Sparks

A’ja Wilson flashed her MVP form on Wednesday, leading the Las Vegas Aces to an 89-74 win over the Los Angeles Sparks with a dominant 34 points, including 17 points in the first quarter. Before tipoff, Wilson paid tribute to the late Kobe and Gianna Bryant by donning a blue Mambacita Foundation hoodie during her pre-game walk.

The gesture did not go unnoticed. Vanessa Bryant, Kobe's widow, reposted a photo of Wilson in the blue hoodie with a heart emoji on her Instagram story on Wednesday.

Bryant's IG story (@vanessabryant Instagram)

The Mambacita Foundation has been known to help young, underprivileged girls in their sporting ambitions. The name came from Gianna Bryant’s billing as the mambacita, just like her father, Kobe, who was known for being the Black Mamba.

The foundation, which was founded by Vanessa Bryant, was to continue the principles and vision for budding athletes started by Kobe and Gianna Bryant.

Many in the sporting world have been supporting the foundation, including A’ja Wilson in the WNBA.

Following her pregame outfit, Wilson dropped 17 points on a perfect 8-of-8 shooting from the field en route to the Las Vegas win.

The game also happened in LA, where Bryant made his name in the basketball world by becoming the face of the Lakers for 20 years, winning five NBA championships along the way.

After winning a consensus MVP award, Wilson has not been consistent this year, posting 22.1 points, 9.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.7 steals per game.

The win against the Sparks put the Aces’ record at 14-13, lifting them to the seventh seed and just 0.5 behind the sixth-seed Indiana Fever.

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A’ja Wilson cites a Kobe Bryant quote to instill discipline in her game

In an interview with Uproxx last year, A’ja Wilson said her screensaver reads a Kobe Bryant quote that helped her become more disciplined in training, reaffirming her adoration for the mamba mentality.

"It’s actually my phone’s screensaver. Kobe said, 'Rest at the end, not in the middle…And that is something that I really approached this year with,” the Aces star said.

"I just keep telling myself, 'Rest at the end, not in the middle.' I just keep playing, and I keep pushing through," Wilson said. "Trying to push through these walls, so that I can push through (them) for my teammates so they know that they can push through (them). That’s what’s making me play at this level, and I’m having so much fun doing it."

Wilson is expected to do the heavy lifting for the Aces in their playoff push for the rest of the regular season.