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Vanessa Bryant Says Kobe Bryant ‘Would Have Been So Proud to See’ His Book Become a Bestseller

One final accomplishment. Vanessa Bryant paid tribute to her late husband, Kobe Bryant, after his book The Wizenard Series: Season One debuted at the top of The New York Times’ bestseller list.

Related: Kobe Bryant’s 10 Most Inspirational Quotes

“5 championships 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆. 5 NYT bestsellers 📖📖📖📖📖. The Mamba strikes again. 🐍👑,” the former model, 37, wrote via Instagram on Wednesday, April 8. “My husband @kobebryant would have been so proud to see his work continuing on with The #Wizenard Series: Season One. Thank you for supporting his legacy!!!! 🧡#GranityStudios.”

The Wizenard Series: Season One, which hit bookstores on March 31, tells the story of a young basketball player who aspires to be more than a benchwarmer. The novel is the follow-up to 2019’s The Wizenard Series: Training Camp. Kobe created both stories, which were written by author Wesley King.

Prior to his tragic death in January, the Los Angeles Lakers legend opened up to USA Today about his dream to expand the sports fantasy universe that he started with The Wizenard Series.

“Our challenge now is taking books and making them into films, feature films and in series, some of which will be animated and some of which will be live-action,” he told the newspaper days before his passing. “So it’s figuring out how to do that, while understanding that owning the intellectual property is absolutely essential. It’s fun to figure out the journey, but it’s also extremely frustrating. Things don’t move as fast as you want them to. But that’s OK.”

Vanessa Bryant Says Kobe Bryant Would be Proud Book Bestseller
Vanessa Bryant and Kobe Bryant Gregory Pace/BEI/Shutterstock

Related: Kobe Bryant’s Life in Photos

Kobe, 41, and his daughter Gianna, 13, were among the nine people who died in a helicopter crash in the Calabasas neighborhood of L.A. on January 26.

The NBA star and Vanessa, who married in April 2001, also shared daughters Natalia, 17, Bianka, 3, and Capri, 9 months.

Related: Kobe Bryant and Vanessa Bryant's Relationship Timeline

Since Kobe’s death, his family and friends have paid tribute to him countless times. Most recently, Vanessa and Natalia became emotional during an interview with ESPN as they discussed his posthumous induction into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

“We wish that he was here with us to celebrate, but it’s definitely the peak of his NBA career, and every accomplishment that he had as an athlete was a stepping stone to be here,” Vanessa said on Saturday, April 4. “We are incredibly proud of him, and there’s some solace in knowing that he was probably going to be a part of the 2020 Hall of Fame class.”

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