By EEW Magazine News // Sports

Vanessa Bryant made an appearance at the NBA All-Star game Sunday to present Phoenix Suns point guard, Chris Paul, with the first-ever Kobe and Gigi Bryant Advocacy Award.

The 12-time All-Star, 36, was awarded "for his significant contributions to the advancement of girls' and women's basketball, and advocacy for the WNBA," the WBNA said in a press release.

The annual award which is named after the late Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna (Gigi) Bryant, is given to those "who use their time, talent, and platform to raise awareness for the WNBA, and women's and girls' basketball in various ways,” according to the WNBA.

The honor comes more than two years after Kobe, 41, and daughter Gigi, 13, died with seven others in a January 26, 2020 helicopter crash in Calabasas, California along with pilot Ara Zobayan, 50, Alyssa Altobelli, 14, Keri Altobelli, 46, John Altobelli, 56, Payton Chester, 13, Sarah Chester, 46, and Christina Mauser, 38.

The award specifically “highlights Kobe's legacy as a coach and mentor and Gigi's inspirational, relentless commitment to playing at the highest levels of the game,” the WNBA said. “Gigi, a happy, loving and competitive young lady, wanted to pursue her dreams of one day playing in the WNBA and continuing her father's legacy while elevating women in sports. Gigi loved the game of basketball and aspired to reach the pinnacle of the sport like her father.”

The special ceremony took place at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, where Paul was lauded for being a devoted fan of the WNBA and the Phoenix Mercury who attends both regular season and playoff games. According to the WBNA, he is "using his public platforms to highlight the on-court successes and stories of WNBA players as well as their leadership in the community through their fight for social justice."

The WNBA praised Kobe's commitment to boosting women's basketball “at every level” by “forging relationships, mentoring and training high school, college, NBA and WNBA players, coaching Gigi's youth basketball team, and launching the Mamba Sports Academy.”

"I have seen first-hand Chris' appreciation of the WNBA and the game at every level for women and girls, especially in Phoenix and North Carolina, and his ardent support of our game strongly reflects the legacy of Kobe and Gigi," said WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert.

"The league is proud to name Chris as the inaugural recipient of the Kobe & Gigi Bryant WNBA Advocacy Award," she added, "as he serves as a leader and role model for other professional athletes around growing the future of the game for young girls and all fans."