LeBron James Posts Kobe Bryant Birthday Message on Instagram: 'Miss You Man'

Mike Chiari @mikechiariFeatured ColumnistAugust 23, 2020

Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant, right, and Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James, left, are seen on the court together during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, March 10, 2016, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Danny Moloshok)

Danny Moloshok/Associated Press

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James posted a happy birthday message to late Lakers legend Kobe Bryant on Sunday.

LeBron took to Instagram to post a video of himself singing happy birthday to Bryant on his 30th birthday in 2008:

SportsCenter @SportsCenter
Throwback to when Team USA sang happy birthday to Kobe 🥳 https://t.co/KDVR5lbwPM

James accompanied the video with the following caption: "Happy Bday my brother!! Miss you man!! #LongLive #GoneButNeverEverForgotten."

Sunday would have been Bryant's 42nd birthday, and many within the basketball and sports world have posted tributes to Kobe in memory of his greatness, including Nike:

Nike Basketball @nikebasketball
Kobe taught us to be better. A better scorer, better mentor, better father, better champion. Today, on his birthday, we continue his endless pursuit of better. Explore #MambaMentality. https://t.co/H4exgG9itT 💜💛 Performance: @kendricklamar https://t.co/1Qm36V9mM6

Bryant died at the age of 41 in January when a helicopter carrying him and several other passengers—including his 13-year-old daughter Gianna Bryant—crashed in Calabasas, California, on the way to Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks, California.

Kobe was arguably the greatest player to ever don a Lakers uniform, as he was named an All-Star 18 times in 20 seasons and finished his career with five championships, two NBA Finals MVP awards, two scoring titles and one NBA MVP award.

The Lakers hadn't been the same since Bryant retired in 2016 until this season with LeBron and Anthony Davis leading the way.

James and Davis helped the Lakers secure the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference and got them to the playoffs for the first time since 2013.

✨ Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content

The Lakers also hold a 2-1 series lead over the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the playoffs, and James is hoping to lead them to their first championship since Bryant spearheaded consecutive title wins in 2009 and 2010.