Although the Lakers’ decision to erect a statue in memory of the late Kobe Bryant outside of their arena was admirable, the team mishandled the tribute.
Fans discovered that the monument honouring the five-time champion in Los Angeles contained several mistakes after it was unveiled. For instance, a box score from the legendary game in which Bryant scored 81 points against the Raptors in 2006 was included in the monument.
For some reason, the person who designed the statue did not hire someone to double check that all the names were spelt correctly. Jose Calderon, a former guard for Toronto who is currently a special advisor for the Cavaliers, should have said Jose “Calderson” instead. Von Wafer, Bryant’s erstwhile colleague, was spelt ‘Vom’ Wafer.
It was also irresponsible to misspell the word decision in “DNP-CD” as “decicion.”
One of the most methodical, deliberate, and determined basketball players in history deserves to be honoured with a statue. Because of his style of play, Bryant even had his own ESPN show named “DETAIL.”
Instead, by blatantly ignoring some of the most crucial information that was available, including the spelling of a name, the statue demonstrated a callous lack of respect and carelessness.