Going for the last ring like it was the first…
The 20th annual BET Awards aired virtually Sunday, and the highlight of the show featured rapper Lil Wayne honoring late Basketball Hall-of-Famer Kobe Bryant.
In 2009, Lil Wayne had a single called “Kobe Bryant” that wound up being featured on the mixtape Tear Drop Tune 2. Lil Wayne performed a version of that track as a tribute to Bryant and his daughter Gianna, who were among nine victims in a fatal helicopter crash in Calabasas, Calif. on Jan. 26.
.@LilTunechi performs “”Kobe Bryant”” 💜💛
RIP Kobe 🙏🏾 #BETAwards ” pic.twitter.com/ktSlO2mqTQ— #BETAwards (@BETAwards) June 29, 2020
Lil Wayne used the following unforgettable highlights of Kobe Bryant moments:
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Bryant’s game-winning buzzer beater against the Miami Heat from December 2009
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The baseline windmill dunk on the road against the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 of the 2003 conference quarterfinals
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The dunk on Steve Nash in Game 2 of the 2006 conference quarterfinals on the road against the Phoenix Suns
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The November 2004 poster dunk over Dwight Howard on the road against the Orlando Magic
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Both the game-tying FG at the end of regulation and the game-winning FG in overtime against the Suns in Game 4 of the 2006 conference quarterfinals
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Bryant’s April 2003 dunk after eluding Vincent Yarbrough of the Denver Nuggets
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The 1997 preseason dunk on Ben Wallace of the Washington Wizards at UNLV
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81 points against the Toronto Raptors in January 2006
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The 5th championship celebration after defeating the Boston Celtics in Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals
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The alley-oop to Shaquille O’Neal in Game 7 of the 2000 Western Conference finals
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A behind-the-back into a spin move, followed by a wrap-around assist to Ronny Turiaf against the Golden State Warriors in March 2008
Lil Wayne also featured clips of Kobe and Gianna Bryant, the night Bryant’s jerseys were retired, and Bryant’s “Mamba Out” speech from his final game in April 2016. Just five days after Bryant’s death, Lil Wayne released Funeral, his 13th studio album. Lil Wayne paid tribute to Bryant then by adding 24 seconds of silence to the eighth track on the album (“Bing James”).
The tribute also came a week after the 2020 ESPYs, which saw rapper Snoop Dogg perform “Mamba Style” in honor of Bryant.
Mamba Forever 🙏🏾 https://t.co/FKFdQYr0vw
— Julius Randle (@J30_RANDLE) June 29, 2020
ON REPEAT 🔥‼️ https://t.co/mSGyK96JS5
— Chris Bosh (@chrisbosh) June 29, 2020
Every hooper knows this song….
RIP Kobe🖤 https://t.co/s2nP1x5MKB— Trae Young (@TheTraeYoung) June 29, 2020
Wayne tribute to Kobe was 🔥! 2 🐐’s BET Awards been all that today!
— Jayson Tatum (@jaytatum0) June 29, 2020
That Kobe tribute was lit by Wayne
— Robert Covington (@Holla_At_Rob33) June 29, 2020