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This One Story About Kobe Bryant Being A "Girls Dad" Is Going Viral

The NBA legend tragically died alongside daughter Gianna this week - by Chelsea Tromans
  • 30 Jan 2020

The sheer amount of beautiful and touching stories about Kobe Bryant following his death on Monday is a testament to the basketball star's legacy both on the court and off. 

Watch Below: Kobe Bryant and daughter Gianna killed in California helicopter crash

One of the most tear-jerking stories to come out so far was when ESPN anchor Elle Duncan recalled her first and only conversation with Kobe in 2018.

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I met Kobe Bryant one time.. we were doing ESPN upfronts together in NYC. He came over and started talking to me about my impending baby (as you can see I was 13 months pregnant). I asked if he had advice on raising girls- he said "Just be grateful you've been given that gift, girls are amazing." He bragged for a few minutes about what his 3 daughters were doing and how tough they were. He commented his wife Vanessa wanted to try for a boy but was jokingly concerned it would be another girl.. I said "How would you feel about that?" WITHOUT hesitation he said "I WOULD HAVE 5 MORE GIRLS IF I COULD.. I'm a girl dad I love the challenge of raising women." Little did I know he would have that 4th girl. Or that I would sit backstage for half an hour chatting up the GOAT about his new retired life and what was ahead. I left so impressed with his ability to exist normally in a space where he was being fawned and followed. How he took time for this Real pregnant women he didn't know to have a real convo with a line of people waiting for a moment just to reassure her. I'm glad to have had that brief time with him. I'm so sorry that 4th girl won't know her dad.

Getting emotional as she retold the story, Elle shared just how much of a proud father the NBA champion was.

When they met, Elle was eight months pregnant with her first child. When she told Kobe she was having a girl, he gave her a high five and said, "Girls are the best."

Kobe had three daughters at the time - Natalia, 15, Gianna, 12, and Bianka, 18 months. 

"I asked him for advice on raising girls, seeing as though he quite famously had three at the time,” Elle shared. “And he said, 'Just be grateful that you've been given that gift because girls are amazing.'" 

"His third daughter, Bianka, was about a year-and-a-half old at the time, so I asked if he wanted more children, and he said that his wife, Vanessa, really wanted to try again for a boy but was sort of jokingly concerned that it would be another girl. And I was like, 'Four girls, are you joking? What would you think? How would you feel?'” 

Recalling the moment and choking up, Elle said, “And without hesitation he said, 'I would have five more girls if I could. I'm a 'girl dad.'"

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Surprise family trip to Cabo for my bday #bryantbunch #40 #queenmamba #mambacitas

Kobe then gushed to Elle about his girls’ accomplishments.

"When it came to sports, he said that his oldest daughter was an accomplished volleyball player and that the youngest was a toddler, so TBD,'' Elle said. "But that middle one, he said, that middle one was a monster. She's a beast. She's better than I was at her age. She's got it. That middle one, of course, was Gigi."

"When I reflect on this tragedy and that half an hour that I spent with Kobe Bryant two years ago, I suppose it's the only small source of comfort for me is knowing that he died doing what he loved the most: being a dad,'' she said. "Being a 'girl dad.'"

In 2019, Kobe and Vanessa had a fourth baby - another girl - Capri Kobe Bryant. 

Chelsea Tromans
Chelsea Tromans
Chelsea Tromans is a fashion, beauty and lifestyle editor whose words can be found on BEAUTYcrew, marie claire, Women’s Health, WHO, Daily Addict, and The Joye…just to name a few. She’s a night owl who’s trying to train herself to be a morning person (coffee helps!) and she recently traded in her hectic Sydney life for a quieter pace in Brisbane.

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