Welcome Back to Dren! Vanessa Bryant Celebrates Release of Kobe's Sports Fantasy Book Season One
Vanessa Bryant celebrated the release of her late husband Kobe Bryant‘s sports fantasy novel Season One on Tuesday, two months after his shocking death.
Season One is the second book of the late NBA star’s series The Wizenard Series. Kobe collaborated on the project with author Wesley King.
“Welcome back to Dren! We hope you are all ready to catch up with the West Bottom Badgers for another magical basketball season,” Vanessa, 37, wrote on Instagram alongside a visual for the novel.
“The #Wizenard Series: Season One is OUT NOW #KobeBryant #GranityStudios #KobeInc,” Vanessa added.
The first book, Training Camp, follows underdog basketball team West Bottom Badgers as they experience a number of magical happenings after a new coach arrives at training camp.
A post shared by Vanessa Bryant 🦋 (@vanessabryant) on Mar 31, 2020 at 8:57am PDT
Earlier this month, King opened up to PEOPLE about his time with Kobe, who died at the age of 41 in a horrific helicopter crash alongside his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and 7 others on Jan. 26.
“His family was first and foremost… I knew that within five minutes of meeting him,” King told PEOPLE. “His daughters were always brought up [and] he was forever calling me while waiting in line to pick them up.”
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Floored by his the NBA star’s “boundless energy”, King, 33, said Kobe’s passion for kids extended far beyond his own brood.
“He was really focused on changing kids’ lives and empowering the next generation of young athletes, especially females,” he said.
Dia Dipasupil/Getty Kobe Bryant
One of many ways he sought such connection was through creating fantastical and ultimately inspiring YA stories with King, his writing partner since 2016. “It almost sounds cliché, but he’d say, ‘If one kid picks this book up and finds the faith in himself to persevere, we did our job … We’re doing this for that one kid,’” said King.
“Kobe really believed that.”
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Since Kobe’s death, King can conjure a scenario where the NBA legend is somehow still sharing his gifts.
“I [envision] him being the ‘hype man’ in the sky organizing competitive scrimmages and there with Gigi and her teammates,” he said.
