One Piece Fans Honor Kobe Bryant with Emotional Mamba Tribute

One Piece fans know the Grand Line GOAT is none other than Monkey D. Luffy. Sure, the hero may fail in battle or make mistakes, but his perseverance sets him apart. Time and again, Luffy gets up from battle determined to fight on and learn with Gear Fourth being one of his greatest techniques. And thanks to one fan, the entire One Piece community is taking time to honor Kobe Bryant after the athlete’s tragic passing.

For those unaware, the iconic NBA player died earlier this week when he and eight others were killed in a helicopter crash. The former Los Angeles Lakers player is touted as one of the best athletes to join the NBA, and he inspired dozens of stars like LeBron James. Bryant’s determination to be the best was a motivation to millions, and the artist Professor Gemini honored the player’s spirit with a special tribute over on Reddit.

The artist did up a black-and-white sketch which helps One Piece give its regards to Bryant. The artwork can be found below, and it ties one of Luffy’s greatest moves with the late NBA star with help from a special mamba.

As you can see, the artwork sees Luffy in the background throwing out his dreaded Black Mamba attack. The move is one which the pirate can only use when in Gear Fourth, and it is truly devastating. The attack moves so quickly that enemies are unable to dodge or stop him attacks, and that is something Bryant can relate to.

After all, the athlete was known for his unflappable confidence on court and his last-minute pivots. Bryant mastered not only the art of shooting but maneuvering round the court. This is why the star was often referred to as Mamba, and One Piece fans are taking time to remember Bryant as a beloved father and athlete who embodied the kind of tenacity we can only aspire to.

Do you feel this tribute suits one of basketball’s greatest players? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics and anime!

Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece first began serialization in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump in 1997. It has since been collected into over 90 volumes, and has been a critical and commercial success worldwide with many of the volumes breaking printing records in Japan. The manga has even set a Guinness World Record for the most copies published for the same comic book by a single author, and is the best-selling manga series worldwide with over 430 million copies sold.