Vanessa Bryant Says Kobe Would Be 'So Proud' After His Novel Makes It On To NYT Bestseller List

Apr 09, 2020 by apost team

Following legendary athlete Kobe Bryant’s passing early this year at the age of 41, the basketball player’s wife, Vanessa Bryant, praised her late husband in an Instagram post on Wednesday after his sports fantasy novel made it on to The New York Time’s Best Seller list. The fantasy novel, written in collaboration with the author Wesley King, is the second installment in the NBA player’s book series entitled The Wizenard Series.

Along with a photo of the book, Vanessa posted a caption celebrating her late husband’s accomplishments, writing: “5 championships 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆. 5 NYT bestsellers 📖📖📖📖📖. The Mamba strikes again. 🐍👑. My husband @kobebryant would have been so proud to see his work continuing on with The #Wizenard Series: Season One. Thank you for supporting his legacy!!!! #GranityStudios.”

The New York Times Best Seller, released with the subtitle “Season One,” follows Reggie, a benchwarmer who plays for the worst team in his basketball league, according to the book’s Goodreads description. While Reggie practices tirelessly to overcome what seem like magical forces working against him, he just can’t manage to fulfill his dream of becoming a star athlete — even with the mysterious new coach's help.

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Wesley King, who helped pen the novels, met with People earlier this month to open up about the writing process, which reportedly took six or seven different drafts before coming up with the final version. “This is an underdog story,” King told People. “This is a story about a kid who’s defined himself as being as the bottom of the bottom. He’s so used to losing so he believes he can only lose. So, this entire story is about redefining who we are and working towards our dreams. It’s a very Kobe-esque story.”

Beyond the late basketball star’s surprising literary prowess, Kobe continues to rack up basketball awards, too. According to People, Vanessa and her 17-year-old daughter Natalia appeared on ESPN earlier this month to discuss Kobe’s posthumous induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. 

“It’s an incredible accomplishment and honor and we’re extremely proud of him,” Vanessa said in the interview, according to People. “Obviously, we wish that he was here with us to celebrate, but it’s definitely the peak of his NBA career.”

After a fatal helicopter crash that killed the athlete and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna on Jan. 13, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Chairman came out to announce Kobe’s posthumous induction, saying that there was “no doubt” that Kobe would be honored, according to People.

Before his death, Kobe was considered among the best basketball players of all time. With more than five NBA championships and one MVP award under his belt, the basketball phenom retired with over 30,000 career points, the third highest in the NBA’s history, according to The Guardian. And now with his posthumous book release and New York Times Best Seller designation, Kobe can put one more feather in his cap as someone who has forever changed basketball history.

Have you read Kobe's new book? Did you even know that he was a writer? Let us know and pass this story on to all the Kobe fans you know.