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Good thing that Kobe Bryant is getting three statues. The first one has typos

Misspellings have been pointed out on Kobe Bryant's statue at Crypto.com Arena Star Plaza.
Misspellings have been pointed out on Lakers legend Kobe Bryant’s statue at Crypto.com Arena Star Plaza.
(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
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It’s a good thing that Kobe Bryant is getting three statues built.

The first one immortalizing the Lakers legend was unveiled last month outside Crypto.com Arena and it has three glaring typos.

The 19-foot statue honoring Bryant’s 81-point performance against the Toronto Raptors in 2006 — with him pointing a finger in the sky — has fans pointing toward the base of the statue. That’s where the game’s box score has the misspelled names of two players — Raptors guard Jose Calderon and Lakers guard Von Wafer — and the word “decision.”

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The statue of Kobe Bryant unveiled by the Lakers shows a player who isn’t scoring, but the man who became more inclusive and unselfish during his career.

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The Lakers are planning to fix the mistakes on the statue sculpted by Julie Rotblatt Amrany.

“We have been aware of this for a few weeks and are already working to get it corrected soon,” a Lakers spokesperson said in a statement.

The box score with the names of players and their stats on the base of Kobe Bryant's statue.
The box score on Kobe Bryant’s statue has Lakers guard Von Wafer’s first name misspelled as “Vom,” and to the right of his name the word decision is misspelled as “decicion.”
(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

Calderon’s last name is misspelled as “Calderson,” and Wafer’s first name is “Vom.” Wafer, whose actual name is Vakeaton Quamar Wafer, was a rookie for the Lakers during the 2005-06 season and the box score shows that he did not play due to a coach’s “decicion.”

SoCal murals honor Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, who died four years ago in a helicopter crash that also killed his daughter Gianna and seven others.

Jan. 26, 2024

Calderon, who also rookie was that season, went on to play for the Lakers in 2016-17, a year after Bryant retired following 20 seasons with Los Angeles.

Almost four years after leaving the NBA, Bryant died with eight others in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26, 2020, in Calabasas.

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The Lakers announced last month that Bryant would get two more statues, one with him in a No. 24 jersey, which he wore in his last 10 seasons, and the other with daughter Gianna, who also was killed in the crash.

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