Kobe Bryant's Widow Vanessa Receives Red Roses on Her 19th Wedding Anniversary

Kobe Bryant died earlier this year. However, his wife, Vanessa, is still taking out time to celebrate some of their milestones together.

This past weekend marked what would have been Kobe and Vanessa’s 19th wedding anniversary. The mother of three took time out to celebrate him on her Instagram page via a picture.

The photo was a throwback to the couple’s earlier days. Vanessa is sitting on Kobe’s lap and smiling to the camera, while the late basketball icon plants a smooch on her cheek. She captioned the image:

"My king, my heart, my best friend. Happy 19th wedding anniversary baby. I miss you so much. I wish you were here to hold me in your arms. I love you. ❤️"

The couple had four children – Gianna, Natalia, Bianka, and Capri. Sadly, Gianna died along with Kobe earlier this year as well.

Vanessa also showed off a bouquet of roses that was sent to her to mark the occasion. In a separate Instagram picture, she thanked Pau Gasol and his wife, Cat McDonnell, for the sweet gesture.

Pau was one of Kobe’s closest friends. The two were also teammates on the Los Angeles Lakers from 2008 to 2014. Although Vanessa will be feeling the loss of Kobe from time to time, she’s been able to lean on a lot of family friends at this time as well.

Kobe had always known that Vanessa is the perfect one for him.

Even more poignant was a second video that Vanessa posted. In it, a much younger Kobe sits for an interview and explains what made Vanessa “the one.”

Kobe stared into the camera as he explained that he still didn’t know how to explain it. Despite the difficulty, however, Kobe had always known that Vanessa is the perfect one for him. He added:

“I mean, love is a funny thing. I can’t explain it, and I don’t understand it, but all I know is, you know, she caught my heart. And I just knew that she was the one.”

Vanessa isn’t the only one who honored Kobe recently. In their recent draft, the WNBA unveiled the Kobe & Gigi Bryant WNBA Advocacy Award to honor both father and daughter.

Before he died, Kobe dedicated himself to promoting women’s basketball. Gianna was also a top prospect and had dreams of playing in the pros someday.

As the WNBA announced, the award will honor their legacy as well as Kobe’s dedication to helping to guide the next generation.

Vanessa shared the announcement on Instagram. She will also help to choose who gets the award next year.