NBA 2K21 will have two covers honoring the late Kobe Bryant, NBA 2K revealed on its TikTok page Thursday morning.
What’s happening:
NBA 2K revealed two new covers for its upcoming NBA 2K21 game featuring Kobe Bryant, the Los Angeles Lakers legend who died in a tragic helicopter crash in January.
The “Mamba Forever Edition” will feature these covers, one of which will be for next generation consoles like the PlayStation 5 and Xbox One X, and the other for the current generation.
“We love and miss you Kobe,” the video caption read.
@nba2k The Mamba Forever Edition Covers 💛 We love and miss you Kobe 💜
♬ original sound - NBA 2K
NBA 2K21 revealed the cover on its Twitter page, too.
The caption read: “Legend. Leader. Champion. We honor Kobe Bryant as our Cover Athlete for the Next Gen Mamba Forever Edition.”
NBA 2K21 revealed a closer look at the covers as well, showing the artistry needed to create the designs.
2️⃣4️⃣ Legend. Leader. Champion. We honor Kobe Bryant as our Cover Athlete for the Next Gen Mamba Forever Edition 💜💛 #NBA2K21 pic.twitter.com/OOONVibhvX
— NBA 2K (@NBA2K) July 2, 2020
8️⃣ Relentless. Driven. A true competitor. We celebrate Kobe Bryant as our Cover Athlete for the Current Gen Mamba Forever Edition 🐍 #NBA2K21 pic.twitter.com/1wfH4kTPPN
— NBA 2K (@NBA2K) July 2, 2020
Mamba Forever 💜💛 A closer look at the covers
— NBA 2K (@NBA2K) July 2, 2020
We love and miss you Kobe #NBA2K21 pic.twitter.com/Jf1M5kUewx
NBA 2K21 is available for preorder on the NBA 2K website. The Mamba Edition comes with additional material.
Kobe Bryant was rumored to be a cover athlete for NBA2K21. In fact, Shaquille O’Neal said back in March that Bryant should be on the cover of the annual game, as I wrote about for the Deseret News.
O’Neal said, “Yeah. There is going to be Kobe (edition). You don’t even have to worry about that. Definitely going to be Kobe. And I don’t know what they’re going to do with the money, but they’re going to do the right thing. Kobe’s family does the right thing.”
Bryant joins Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard and New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson as the other two cover athletes for NBA 2K21. Williamson — who became the youngest NBA star to be on the cover — will be on the cover for the next generation version of the game. Lillard will be on the cover for the standard version.