Kobe Bryant

Cam Thomas grew up idolizing Kobe Bryant to the point he begged his mother to redecorate his room to honor his idol, replete with purple-and-gold coloring and a Bryant Fathead, stickers and posters all on his wall.

As Thomas prepares to follow in Bryant's footsteps at NBA draft, the LSU standout is once again honoring the late Lakers great.

Thomas debuted a custom-made suit with a mural of Bryant on the inside lining on the red carpet prior to the draft Thursday. The expected first-round pick shared exclusive photos of the suit with Bleacher Report ahead of the draft and spoke about what honoring Bryant meant to him. 

"I gravitated toward him and then once I really started understanding basketball, it was a no-brainer. I loved how he scored and his mentality. ... It was a no-brainer to gravitate toward someone like that," Thomas said.

Created by designer Michael Fletcher, the suit incorporates a tearaway to reveal the artwork, which features a mural of Bryant that highlights his NBA championships, MVP trophy and Academy Award, among other honors. The interior also includes Bryant's trademark "Mamba Mentality" phrase, along with the quote "let your light shine," which Thomas' mother said to him throughout childhood. 

"I wanted to create a mural style design to honor [Bryant]. I was inspired by his family and street murals of Kobe in LA. Cam is just scratching the surface like a lottery ticket and the tearaway effect on the artwork reflects this with the painted areas. I was thinking about the 'reveal of the jacket and revealing the art' like how scratch cards reveal prizes," Fletcher told Bleacher Report. 

Thomas hopes his own legacy will someday mirror Bryant's. He says he's looked to incorporate Bryant's moves into his game and believes they have a similar will to win. 

"I try to take all of his moves and imitate most of his game and implement it into mine. I feel like both of our games are alike, as far as the post-ups, turnaround jumpers, footwork, our mentality. It looks similar if you really look at it; I try to do my best. He was one of the best tough shot-makers ever, and I think that's the narrative on me now—I can make shots.

"Hopefully I'm mentioned with him, on that level. I'm just trying to strive toward his level. I'm not trying to be there out the gate, but I want to strive toward that."

Thomas is projected to go as high as the late teens but will almost certainly be off the board in the mid-20s on Thursday. 

Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker looked up to Kobe Bryant, but he doesn't want to put himself in the same conversation as the Los Angeles Lakers legend.

During ESPN's The Jump on Monday, Richard Jefferson asked Booker about a comparison to Bryant, to which the two-time All-Star said he "should never be compared to Kobe Bryant."

Toward the end of his career and into retirement, Bryant worked with players throughout the league to impart his wisdom and offer guidance. 

Booker was only a rookie during the 2015-16 season when he received an autographed pair of sneakers from the Hall of Famer that included a message to "be legendary."

"The biggest thing for me was earning his respect," Booker told reporters of Bryant after Bryant's death in January 2020. "To even be the guy in the room after we play them that he wanted to talk to or share advice with. Then our relationship had grown from there. Just figuring out what type of person he was outside of the 'Mamba Mentality.' How he raised his daughters and how much of a family man he was something that was just incredible."

The 24-year-old has been marvelous during Phoenix's run to the NBA Finals, averaging 27.7 points on 45.1 percent shooting through 21 playoff games.

The Suns closed out the Lakers in the first round thanks in large part to a 47-point effort from Booker in Game 6. He said after the game he felt Bryant's presence inside Staples Center while he was shredding Los Angeles' defense:

Booker has always been considered a dynamic scorer, but one question was how much his production translated into wins for the Suns. His famous 70-point game in March 2017 came in a 10-point loss to the Boston Celtics. He dropped 59 on the Utah Jazz in March 2019, but Phoenix still lost by 33.

This postseason is addressing that general skepticism head on, and now the conversation has shifted to how the Suns might be set up to contend for years to come.

But putting Booker alongside Bryant is far too early at this point in his career, regardless of their connection. The latter was an 18-time All-Star and five-time NBA champion, a resume that will be difficult to match.

Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant spoke about the influence late Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant has on him and the rest of the United States men's Olympic basketball team during a press conference on Friday (h/t Angelo Guinhawa of ClutchPoints).

“Kobe Bryant is the guy that all of us looked up to and watched as kids. And even when he was alive and playing, his DNA was embedded in us as players. From afar, [he] taught us what the game is about, what work ethic is about.

And we all kind of pull from him when he was playing and when he was alive. And now that he’s not with us no more, we all want to honor his teachings by going out there and playing with that passion, with that energy every single play.

And guys that had close relationships understand how he will approach every single day, especially with Team USA. He really took pride in being a part of this group and part of this team.

We all feed off of that type of energy, and Kobe always brought that, so he's always big to everyone of us here. We miss him, we miss him dearly because he would be in here, supporting us.

Bryant's decorated career included plenty of success on the international stage, including a pair of Olympic gold medals and the 2007 FIBA World Championship gold medal with Team USA.

Durant and Bryant played together on the 2012 Olympic team, which went undefeated and won a gold medal over Spain in London. That group outscored their opponents by an average of 32.1 points per game.

KD has also built an excellent international basketball resume, winning two Olympic gold medals in addition to World Championship gold. He notably led the Olympic team in scoring in 2012 and 2016.

Durant is looking for his third Olympic gold at this year's Summer Games, and he'll be flanked by some talented players:

The Games will begin July 23 in Tokyo.

Kyle Kuzma is ready to take the next step—both on and off the court.

On the court, he's determined to expand his role and show he can be the focal point of an offense. Off of it, he's ready to give the public a glimpse of his personal life with his Hanging With Kuz video series, set to debut Thursday exclusively on LG OLED televisions.

Hanging With Kuz is a multipart series that follows Kuzma on a tour of his new home and sees him kicking it with actor Travis "Taco" Bennett, his longtime friend. Kuzma and Bennett say their friendship shines through the screen, bringing a lightheartedness and free-flowing feel to the show.

"The series brings a light to my life and Taco's life as well, with an emphasis on how friendship plays a part of living good," Kuzma tells Bleacher Report. 

"It was funny. Just him being my homie made it easier," Bennett adds. "A lot of time we were laughing just to laugh because we're idiots. Working with LG was sick because I'm an idiot...like we've been homies. We've been eatin' and s--t and doin' s--t, and this was a way to cheat. We got to work with each other, and that was hella fun. A lot of time you get to work with people, and a majority of time it's someone you don't really know that well. But to get to work with your homies and do s--t that was tight.

"Our chemistry is just our chemistry in general, so just to be playful in front of the camera isn't hard to do. So I think, bouncing off that, it was just really easy to make jokes and feel comfortable."

The lightheartedness was a welcome change for Kuzma, fresh off a disappointing 2020-21 campaign that saw the Lakers go from hoisting championship gold to being eliminated in the first round of the NBA playoffs. Kuzma, who averaged 12.9 points and 6.1 rebounds, says inconsistent player roles and injuries were among several factors in the Lakers' disappointing playoff run.

"A little bit of everything. Injuries throughout the season, changing roles, certain guys in the lineup, certain guys not in the lineup. The NBA season is already mentally draining, and when you have a lot of that, it just adds to it," Kuzma said.

Perhaps the most draining factor—from a mental and physical standpoint—was the Lakers' lack of rest between seasons. The Lakers were given only a 73-day offseason between the 2020 NBA Finals and the start of a condensed 72-game regular season. LeBron James and Anthony Davis both missed prolonged stretches because of injuries, and the 2021 playoffs have been marred by stars forced to miss time—leading to criticism of the league by James. 

Kuzma agrees with James' assessment that the shortened offseason led to the barrage of injuries. 

"If you look at all the teams that were in the bubble and played long, they had a lot of injuries," Kuzma said. "Look at Denver with Murray, even looking at the Heat this year how many injuries they had, along with us, too. Having AD out, Bron out, [Kentavious Caldwell-Pope] out a few games, [Alex] Caruso out a few games, a lot of people missed games, and I contribute that to the bubble.

"If you think about the injuries from a player's perspective, it wasn't enough time for players to get their bodies ready. But at the same time, you gotta go out and compete and take care of your body. I'm definitely not complaining; they pay us a lot of money to go out there and compete."

The hobbled Lakers' season ended with a first-round loss to the Phoenix Suns, with Davis suffering a critical groin injury that cost him Game 5 and most of Games 4 and 6. The Lakers held a 2-1 series lead when Davis went down in Game 4, and Phoenix went on to earn their first Finals berth since 1993. While some fans could surmise this means the Lakers would be in the Finals now if it weren't for injuries, Kuzma saw championship-caliber chemistry in the Suns. 

"I saw them as a potential Finals team just off their chemistry," Kuzma said. "Last year with us, we had unbelievable chemistry and everybody kind of jelled and knew their role and had fun doing it, had fun playing with each other. I noticed playing them, that same type of feel. Everybody was communicating, talking, having fun, smiling with each other. Usually, when you have a team connected like that, you win big."

This season's Lakers did not play with the same level of joy. The team made several offseason tweaks to the roster, with veterans Rajon Rondo, Danny Green, JaVale McGee and Dwight Howard among the names that were sent packing in favor of Dennis Schroder, Montrezl Harrell, Wesley Matthews and Andre Drummond. While the latter group arguably brings more from an individual talent standpoint, the on-court chemistry didn't reach the same level.

Roster upheaval and injuries led to a healthy Kuzma being shape-shifted into several different roles this season—a point of frustration for the 25-year-old. Kuzma is looking for more consistency in his role next season. 

"My biggest thing is I just want to play within a consistent role," Kuzma said. "If I have that ability, I'll be able to showcase what I can really do. There were parts of this year—and even anywhere else in my career—when I'm in a consistent space, I'm out there handling the ball, making teammates better, scoring, shooting, defending, rebounding. I think if I'm in that space, I'll be good."

If you're sensing irritation, it would be hard to blame him. Kuzma entered the league in 2017 as a late first-round pick out of Utah and instantly blossomed, finishing behind only future All-NBAers Ben Simmons, Donovan Mitchell and Jayson Tatum in Rookie of the Year voting. A year later, he was the Lakers' second-leading scorer in James' first season with the franchise; he was the only member of their young core not sent to New Orleans as part of the Anthony Davis trade.

Davis' arrival meant a seismic role adjustment for Kuzma, who became a sixth man during their championship campaign and saw his numbers dip across the board. Injuries to James and Davis had Kuzma shuffling in and out of the starting lineup this season, with 32 starts against 36 games coming as a reserve.

Kuzma's numbers were stronger across the board when he started in his natural 4 position, and he still sees himself as a player capable of averaging 25 points per game and reaching All-Star heights. 

"I definitely can. I definitely believe that, too. I don't really care what nobody thinks or says. I know myself, and I know my ability. It's hard to be consistent in an inconsistent role. I'm excited for a more consistent space next year," Kuzma said. 

"I've done a great job every offseason of trying to build something and add something to my game. I've turned myself into a great defender. My rookie year, I was a stop sign on defense. I didn't really stop anybody. Now, whether it's elite wings, 4 men, even point guards and shooting guards, I have the ability to guard four positions now and really affect the game on that end of the court."

The numbers back up Kuzma's assessment. A below-average defender who was regularly thrown on an opponent's worst offensive player early in his career, Kuzma became one of the Lakers' most versatile defenders last season. Opponents shot 2.6 percent worse than their average when Kuzma was the primary defender, and he uses his length well on closeouts, holding opponents to just 29.7 percent shooting from three. 

Kuzma says he's now intent on fixing the other major flaw some see in his game: ball-handling. 

After taking a couple weeks of rest following the Lakers' elimination, Kuzma hit the gym to focus on fine-tuning his handle in hopes of gaining more offensive responsibility. He desires the trust to lead offensive sets and help make teammates better rather than stay stationary on offense. In 2020-21, a career-high 58.2 percent of Kuzma's shots came with zero dribbles; only 20.6 percent of his shots were pull-ups. 

"I'm working on my ball-handling so I'm able to get where I want on the court more efficiently and not necessarily be an in-the-corner type of shooter," Kuzma said. 

Kuzma sounds like a player ready to blossom into an on-court leader, someone who has spent his formative years learning from greats and wants a chance to apply what he's learned for himself. He mentions James and the late Kobe Bryant among his favorite players and speaks of their infectious enthusiasm when asked to compare the all-time greats. 

"They're obviously two different people, and it's really hard to compare both of them. They're just so vastly different, but the one thing in common is they're just both winners in life," Kuzma said. "They attack everything with a certain type of enthusiasm, whether it's basketball, whether it's business, whether it's life, whether it's working out, their approach to get to the gym or their approach to get to their bodies or lifting is just a winner's enthusiasm. They're just enthusiastically optimistic about everything. Their confidence levels are very, very high and very, very rare."

Hanging With Kuz is available exclusively on LG OLED televisions. It's the second release of LG's "Only on OLED" series.

Jayson Tatum will wear the No. 10 jersey for Team USA at the Summer Olympics, following in the path of Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant.

"It's a tremendous honor," Tatum said of the jersey number, per Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press. "And I'll wear it proudly."

Kobe memorably wore No. 8 and 24 for the Los Angeles Lakers but put on the No. 10 jersey for Team USA. Tatum, who wears No. 0 for the Boston Celtics, is looking to honor the deceased superstar.

"With this being the first Olympics since we lost him, it holds that much more value," he said. "It's not something I take lightly."

Bryant played a key role for USA Basketball, representing the country in the 2008 Olympics as part of the "redemption team" after a disappointing bronze medal in 2004. The 2008 squad returned to dominance behind Bryant, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony among others.

Four years later, Kobe was again a key player as the United States took home a second straight gold medal in 2012.

Tatum is looking to replicate this success in Tokyo, although his previous senior experience was not quite as good. The forward was part of a 2019 FIBA World Cup team that finished in seventh place, although he only played two games because of an ankle injury.

The 23-year-old has seen his career blossom since then with two straight All-Star selections. Tatum finished this past year averaging 26.4 points, 7.4 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game, all career highs.

He is now expected to be a key player for the Americans later this month as he tries to replicate the success of his "favorite player" in Bryant.

Vanessa Bryant has settled her lawsuit against helicopter company Island Express, according to TMZ Sports.

Per that report, "Vanessa sued Island Express back in February 2020, blaming the helicopter company for the fatal crash that killed her husband and daughter. In her suit, Vanessa claimed the weather conditions—an extremely low, blinding fog—were not conducive to flying... and she claimed the pilot, Ara George Zobayan, failed to properly assess and monitor the weather before takeoff and during flight."

Nine people died in the ensuing crash in January 2020: Kobe Bryant, Gianna Bryant, Alyssa Altobelli, John Altobelli, Keri Altobelli, Payton Chester, Sarah Chester, Christina Mauser and the pilot, Zobayan.

In February, the National Transportation Safety Board largely blamed Zobayan, with the Associated Press reporting the findings determined he "ignored his training, violated flight rules by flying into conditions where he couldn't see and failed to take alternate measures, such as slowing down and landing or switching to auto-pilot, that would have averted the tragedy."

The NTSB also faulted Island Express for "inadequate review and oversight of safety matters," per the AP.

John Barr of ESPN reported in January that surviving members of the Altobelli, Chester and Mauser families also filed wrongful death lawsuits against the helicopter company.

Island Express, meanwhile, sued air traffic controllers Kyle Larsen and Matthew Conley, saying the fatal crash "was caused by a series of erroneous acts and/or omissions" by the pair.

Vanessa Bryant also filed a lawsuit against Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva and the deputies who shared photos of the crash site for "negligence, invasion of privacy, intentional infliction of emotional distress and the violation of her right to privacy under the 14th Amendment," per Barr.

U.S. District Judge John F. Walter granted additional time to Vanessa Bryant for gathering discovery evidence in her lawsuit against Los Angeles County, according to USA Today's Brent Schrotenboer. 

The widow of Kobe Bryant is suing for negligence and invasion of privacy after sheriff and fire department employees allegedly shared photos of her deceased husband and daughter, Gianna, from the scene of their helicopter crash in January 2020. Vanessa Bryant requested more time after her lawyer, Luis Li, told the court the misconduct "is both more expansive and more egregious than (Bryant) originally understood."

On Friday, the court ruled in her favor, pushing back the discovery deadline from August 16 to November 29 while postponing the trial date from November 16 to February 22, 2022. 

Judge Walter found the county's argument that Bryant's request served as a "fishing expedition" unconvincing. 

Per Walter's ruling:

"Specifically, due to unanticipated developments in this case, including delays in obtaining initial disclosures, a complete identification of relevant witnesses, and the production of internal investigation reports and documents, as well as the necessity of a time-intensive forensic examination of devices … the Court concludes that it is no longer feasible for [Bryant] to complete discovery before the current discovery cutoff despite her diligence.”

The county continues to argue Bryant's case holds no merit on the grounds that photos were not publicly disseminated and only shared with government officials as well as "one friend at a bar." 

Bryant initially sought to extend the discovery period to February 2022, which Walter said was "not necessary." 

"Defendants claim they are being victimized by Mrs. Bryant’s prosecution and public disclosure of this lawsuit," Li wrote in a court filing. "But Mrs. Bryant of course has every right to pursue discovery to find out how and why Sheriff’s Department personnel took and shared pictures of her daughter and husband’s remains."

Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker painted a masterpiece Thursday night, dropping 47 points with 11 rebounds in a 113-100 Game 6 victory to eliminate the Los Angeles Lakers from the postseason. 

That Booker did it on the road in Los Angeles only made it more special. Not only was he going against LeBron James, but he also drew inspiration from the Nos. 8 and 24 banners hanging above him in the Staples Center while he played. 

"Honestly, I was thinking about Kobe and the conversations that we had," Booker said about his performance. "Seeing that 8 and that 24 up there with the way the lighting at Staples has right here, it feels like it's shining down on you. And I know he was here tonight. ... I know he was in the building, and I know he was proud."

If there is anything Bryant enjoyed more than a Lakers win, it was watching basketball players figure out how to elevate their game. He preached it with his talk of the "Mamba Mentality" and tried to instill it in Booker back in 2016 when Bryant handed him his game-worn shoes with a simple message written on them: "Be legendary." 

That message was the first thing Booker tweeted early Friday morning after the win. 

It's clear Booker took Bryant's sentiment to heart—even if it meant eliminating Bryant's former club.