Vanessa Bryant Supports Kyrie Irving's Push to Put Kobe on NBA Logo

Kyrie Irving's recent push to make Kobe Bryant the official logo of the NBA has received support from Vanessa Bryant. 

The widow of the former Los Angeles Lakers star responded positively to Irving's Instagram post about changing the logo:

"Gotta Happen, idc what anyone says," the Brooklyn Nets star wrote on Instagram. "BLACK KINGS BUILT THE LEAGUE."

The NBA has used a silhouette of Jerry West as its primary logo since 1969. He was entering his 10th season with the Los Angeles Lakers at that point.

"The logo, this is not something he was at all seeking. It was [then-NBA Commissioner] Walter Kennedy's idea. Walter felt it was important to have a brand for the league," author Jonathan Coleman told Aaron Dodson of The Undefeated in 2017. "Jerry's proud to be the logo, but it's also embarrassing to him, in equal measure."

West told ESPN's The Jump in April 2017 that he would like to see the league change the logo to something else: 

"Again it's flattering, but I think if I were the NBA, I would be embarrassed about it, I really would. ... I don't like to do anything to call attention to myself, and when people say that, that's just not who I am, period. And if they would want to change it, I wish they would. In many ways, I wish they would."

In 2015, West told Jordan Schultz of the Huffington Post he would like to see Michael Jordan's silhouette used as the league's official logo. 

Bryant died in January 2020 at the age of 41 in a helicopter crash that also killed eight other people. He spent his entire 20-year playing career with the Los Angeles Lakers from 1996 to 2016. He was named to the All-Star team 18 times and won five NBA championships. 

The NBA has not announced any plans to change the logo.