Kobe Bryant was one of the legends of the game. From his patented jump shot to the way he dominated the offensive play for the Lakers, Bryant’s 20-years with the team will go down in history as one of the most impressive careers ever.
Kobe’s legacy lives on in the wake of his traffic demise. In January 2021, Kobe and his daughter would be victims of a tragic helicopter crash. The news of the former star’s death sent shockwaves across the global basketball community, with fans worldwide mourning his loss.
Kobe dedicated 20-years to the Lakers, leading them to five NBA Championships while posting the third-highest points total of all time. The man was a special talent, and even though he was retired at the time of the accident, fans will still miss his presence.
Kobe spent most of his time doing charitable work with the Bryant Foundation and its partners. With him no longer at the figurehead of many of these organizations, many expected them to whither. However, it’s clearly not the case, and Kobe’s philanthropic efforts continue well after his passing.
NFT collectibles and Kobe Bryant: The KB24 Collection
While Kobe may be gone from this world, fans still support him and his foundation through buying collectible merch. There’s a huge market for sports memorabilia, and Kobe is one of the world’s most elite athletes, regardless of the sports discipline.
From trading cards to jerseys and signed photos, there are plenty of Kobe collectibles out there. However, 2021 sees the launch of a new type of sports collectible in the KB24 NFT Collection.
NFTs are hot right now; this innovative tech comes with plenty of applications, from hosting video game characters to sports cards. NFTs present a new type of collectible for the sports market, bringing images and videos to fans as a one-off piece of “digital art.”
The KB24 NFT Art Collection is the latest NFT trend in 2021, promising to be the premier sports memorabilia event of the year. This collection features custom NFTs, all with original digital artwork. The pieces will sell through an established online broker platform, and the official KB24.com website is live for reservations in the presale phase of the event.
Fans of the Black Mamba can’t afford to miss out on this NFT drop. The team behind the KB24 project wanted to do something to remember Kobe, providing real value to his legacy and the Bryant family. They managed to achieve both of these goals through this NFT venture.
With the KB24 Collection, the team extends the legacy of Kobe Bryant into the digital universe. They also add to his fundraising efforts for his foundation, providing all proceeds from the NFT sales to go to the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation.
The Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation and the Bryant legacy
The sale of the KB24 Collection sees all proceeds go to the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation. The Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation provides sports programs and facilities for athletes and women that want to enter sports across America.
This organization is one of Bryant’s projects and independent of his work with the Bryant Foundation. The Bryant’s have a lasting relationship with the foundation, even in the wake of Kobe’s death.
The tragic event initiated the change for the organization’s name. The foundation switched its title from Kobe Bryant’s Mamba Sports foundation to the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation. The change came in homage to Gianna, Kobe’s Daughter, who would be 15 this year.
Kobe carried the handle of “The Black Mamba” throughout his career with the Lakers. The megastar passed this moniker onto his daughter, affectionately naming her “Mambacita.” As a result, the change of the foundation’s title to the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation was a commemoration of both lives lost to the Bryant family on that fateful day in January 2020.
The KB24 team founded the project with the dual goal of realizing an extension of the Bryant legacy into the realm of cyberspace while providing a fundraising event for the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation.
Fans from around the globe will have a chance to participate in both the presale and sale of the KB24 collection. These NFTs promise to be highly sought-after collectibles that will appreciate over coming years.
Not only will the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation benefit from the initial sale of the NFTs, but they’ll also receive recurring donations every time one of the NFTs changes owners in the future. This model gives the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation access to a funding source with endless benefits.
Kobe Bryant: Immortalized through Digital NFT art
Throughout his career with the LA Lakers, Kobe Bryant displayed a level of talent and skill with the game that only comes along once or twice in a generation.
His all-star fame and international acclaim show that he’s one of the best ever in the NBA. As a true legend of the game, he deserves his no. 24 jersey hanging from the rafters at the staples center.
LA is such a fan of Kobe that LA and Orange countries officially nominated August 24th as “Kobe Bryant Day.” The “KB24” NFT project pays homage to Kobe’s initials and his playing number, where he wore the no. 24 jersey during the prime of his career.
With the KB24 Collection, Kobe fans worldwide get a chance to purchase exclusive, one-off NFT digital art. Each unique NFT features Bryant in a defining moment during his NBA career. This selection of NFT memorabilia promises to be the hottest NFT drop of 2021.
The KB24 Collection: Fans honor Kobe Bryant with Digital NFTs
The mass adoption of NFT technology in 2021 saw a boom in the DeFi crypto sector. The sudden surge in activity surged through the influencer space, with everyone from Gary Vee to Logan chiming in on the internet’s latest digital asset class.
NFTs have several purposes, from providing video game characters to sports memorabilia. The tech gets its versatility and utility from its smart contract capability, hosted by the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain.
Every NFT in the KB Collection is an individual digital artwork with registration on the Ethereum blockchain. That’s something that’s entirely different from any other sports memorabilia out there. For instance, how do you know that that signature on that cap is legit or if that sports card is the real deal?
With the Ethereum blockchain backing every NFT in the KB24 Collection, you overcome this issue of authentication. Since each NFT has registration with the ETH blockchain, anyone can check to verify the owner, legitimacy, and validity of the NFT on sale.
There’s no chance of forgery and no way of purchasing an authentic NFT. IT’s for this reason that NFTs offer the future of sports memorabilia for fans around the world.
The KB24 Collection and the Opensea marketplace
As mentioned, the KB24 Collection is currently up for presale through the official KB24.com website. You can register on the site and join the KB24 discord feed for the latest details of the presale and sale before it goes live.
When the sale does go live, it will be through the “Opensea” marketplace. Opensea provides a platform for people to trade NFTs. Users can buy and sell NFTs in a transparent environment, with total security of all data. Opensea has an established reputation as one of the leading NFT marketplaces, and it’s the ideal digital venue for the launch of the KB24 Collection.
To fund the transaction, users will pay for their NFTs using a cryptocurrency, likely Ethereum (ETH). The goal of the KB24 project was to use the proceeds of the NFT sale to bolster the fundraising efforts for the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation.
The KB24 NFT project: Brace yourself for launch
Fans around the world will wait breathlessly for the launch of the coveted KB24 Collection. The NFTs promise to provide highlights of the most noteworthy and defining moments in Kobe’s outstanding career at the Lakers. Any real Lakers fan has to have one of these collectibles in their digital artwork collection.
The KB24 team issues their promise of never replicating any of the NFTs sold, ensuring that every NFT is a true, authentic, original digital artwork. Every piece showcases the elite athlete’s personality, skillset, and dedication to the sport, and it’s a one-off opportunity for dedicated fans to get in on the ground floor of this project.
The KB24 Collection isn’t your average sports memorabilia offering. NFTs have seen a huge growth in 2021, with some exploding in price from a few dollars to millions. These individual digital artworks give fans access to the most exceptionally unique Kobe memorabilia available anywhere on the internet.
Help the KB24 team achieve their goal of donating to the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation and the Bryant legacy by supporting the sale of the KB Collection when it goes live. Sign up for the presale list and the Discord chat to stay in touch with all the latest developments.
Story by Murash Bollt
Share
Contributors
