Vanessa Bryant honored her first wedding anniversary without late husband Kobe Bryant.
On Saturday (April 18), the widow took to social media to share the stunning gift she received on the special day from the legendary basketball player’s former teammate, Pau Gasol, and his wife, Cat. "Anniversary flowers from my Kobe. ❤️💔🙏🏽Thank you @nataliabryant #GiannaBryant #BiankaBryant #CapriBryant @jeffleatham @catmcdonnell7 @paugasol," Vanessa captioned the image of the array of floral bouquets she received from Cat and Gasol, who was Kobe’s teammate on the Los Angeles Lakers from 2008 to 2014.
As fans know, the high school sweethearts have been together since 1999 and married on April 18, 2001.
On January 26, Kobe and his daughter, Gianna, were among the nine passengers to lose their lives in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California.
Vanessa shared the thoughtful gift on Instagram just hours before paying tribute to the departed NBA icon on the day of their anniversary. “My king, my heart, my best friend. Happy 19th wedding anniversary baby,” she captioned a romantic picture of her being held in Kobe’s arms. “I miss you so much. I wish you were here to hold me in your arms. I love you. ❤️”
She also posted a throwback video of an MTV interview Kobe gave praising his lady love as “the one,” which she sweetly captioned, “Verified My LOVE ❤️My HEART.”
According to an Entertainment Tonight source, Vanessa celebrated wedding her special day with the couple’s three daughters — Natalia, Bianka, and Capri — while in quarantine amid the COVID-19 (coronavirus) crisis.
Photo: Getty Images