Vanessa Bryant Shares Sweet Throwback Photos with Late Husband Kobe Bryant

Vanessa and Kobe walked hand-in-hand in an old photo she shared on social media

Kobe Bryant 24 of the Los Angeles Lakers walks out with wife Vanessa following the victory over the San Antonio Spurs in Game Five of the Western Conference Finals during the 2008 NBA Playoffs at Staples Center May 29, 2008. Vanessa Bryant Shares Sweet Throwback Photos with Kobe Bryant.
Kobe and Vanessa Bryant in throwback photos. Photo:

Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images; Vanessa Bryant/Instagram

Vanessa Bryant is taking a walk down memory lane.

Less than one week after the fifth anniversary of Kobe and Gianna Bryant's tragic deaths, Vanessa, 42, shared two photos to her Instagram Story with her late husband on Jan. 30.

In the first photo, Kobe and Vanessa, wearing a Los Angeles Lakers hat, are seen walking hand-in-hand through a stadium tunnel.

Vanessa added the song "Paradise" by Sade over the pictures, featuring the lyrics, "Feels like you're mine/ Feels right, so fine/ I'm yours, you're mine/ Like paradise."

 Kobe Bryant 24 of the Los Angeles Lakers walks out with wife Vanessa following the victory over the San Antonio Spurs in Game Five of the Western Conference Finals during the 2008 NBA Playoffs at Staples Center May 29, 2008 in Los Angeles, California.
Kobe Bryant 24 of the Los Angeles Lakers walks out with wife Vanessa following the victory over the San Antonio Spurs in Game Five of the Western Conference Finals during the 2008 NBA Playoffs at Staples Center May 29, 2008 in Los Angeles, California.

Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images

In the second throwback photo, Vanessa and Kobe are riding in a golf cart while the late NBA star sits on his wife's lap.

The couple are both smiling and wearing sunglasses, with Vanessa in a luxe green and purple coat.

Vanessa Bryant Shares Sweet Throwback Photos with Kobe Bryant
Vanessa and Kobe Bryant throwback photo.

Vanessa Bryant/Instagram

She also shared a third photo to her Stories on Thursday, the well-known shot of Kobe in his Lakers jersey holding a young Gianna as she embraces her dad's face. Vanessa put the song "My Little Love" by Adele over the photo of Kobe and Gianna, who was lovingly known as "Gigi" by friends and family.

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On Jan. 22, Vanessa announced the upcoming release of Mamba & Mambacita Forever, a catalogue of over 100 murals and the stories that honor their lasting impact.

The book will release on Aug. 19, just days before Kobe Bryant Day on Aug. 24. The book “brings together the images and stories” of the public art installations that honored the Byrants, per a press release shared with PEOPLE. 

Gianna Kobe Bryant
Gianna and Kobe Bryant mural in downtown Los Angeles.

Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times via Getty 

“Taken together, what emerges is the story of a man who became even more than he himself could have imagined, an avatar of determination, discipline and competitiveness. He was also a worldwide icon, one of the greatest athletes of our time, a man committed to his family and to fatherhood,” the release continued.

The book's photography is by award-winning photographer Andrew D. Bernstein — who previously collaborated with Kobe for his 2018 autobiographical book The Mamba Mentality: How I Play.

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