Kawhi Leonard Becomes First Recipient of the Kobe Bryant MVP Award

The Kia National Basketball Association’s All Star Game took place over the weekend, and Los Angeles Clippers player Kawhi Leonard has become the first recipient of the Kobe Bryant Most Valuable Player award.

The award had recently been renamed to honor the late basketball legend.

Leonard scored a game-high 30 points and seven rebounds to help LeBron James’ Team LeBron beat Team Giannis (named after Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo), 157-155.

It was the 69th NBA All-Star Game in Chicago, which hosted the event for the first time in 32 years.

Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna Bryant had been killed in January in a helicopter crash in southern California.
Bryant and his daughter had a private funeral service this month. A public service to celebrate the pair will take
place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on February 24th.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said the decision was made to name the MVP award after Bryant following league discussions with “particular players,” including Oklahoma City Thunder guard Chris Paul, who assisted with devising the idea.

“Kobe Bryant is synonymous with NBA All-Star and embodies the spirit of this global celebration of our game,” Silver said. “He always relished the opportunity to compete with the best of the best and perform at the highest level for millions of fans around the world.”