By Mark Gray
12:00pm PDT, May 5, 2024
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Gigi Bryant would have been an adult today. The daughter of NBA legend Kobe Bryant tragically passed away alongside her father in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26, 2020. On May 1, Vanessa Bryant — Gigi's mom and Kobe's widow — took to Instagram to pay tribute to her late daughter.
"Happy birthday to my gorgeous girl, Gigi! I love you. I miss you. I'm so proud of you," Vanessa captioned a video showing Gigi over the years.
Vanessa went on to detail what she believes her daughter's life would've been like if it hadn't been cut short: "2024 was your year. You would've been graduating high school and choosing which college to go to. (I would've been trying my hardest to convince you to stay close to home.) I'm proud of the change in sports you and daddy worked so hard on," she wrote. "You continue to motivate me and inspire young women and girls daily. I love you always, mommy. #PlayGigisWay #Mambacita Forever. #18."
After Vanessa shared her touching post about Gigi, she was flooded with well-wishes from NBA and WNBA stars, Olympians, A-listers and more in the entertainment world.
Keep reading to see what everyone had to say…
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"Beautiful!! Happy birthday Gigi" —Viola Davis
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"Happy Birthday Gigi!" —Ciara
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"Happy Birthday to your beautiful Angel light Gigi sending so much love" –Kris Jenner
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"Happy Birthday GiGi #MambacitaForever" —George Lopez
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"HAPPY BIRTHDAY GIGI!!" —Kelly Rowland
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"Happy birthday GiGi. love you" —Sabrina Ionescu
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"A beautiful and enduring legacy full of so much love and so much [fire]" —Olympian Kerri Walsh Jennings
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"This is BEAUTIFUL. Happy birthday, Gigi" —Natalya Neidhart
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"Happy Birthday Gigi!!!" —Trae Young
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"Happy Birthday GIGI!! Love you so much" —Lala Anthony
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"HAPPY BIRTHDAY GIGI. WE LOVE YOU" —Monica
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"Happy Birthday beautiful angel Gigi and to beautiful Mommy Vanessa" —Rachel Zoe
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"Happy 18th Birthday Gigi" –Kim Mulkey
