Debuts at Pearson Park in Lakers purple and gold
Anaheim, Calif. – The kids of the Pearson Park neighborhood have an awesome new basketball court inspired by basketball great Kobe Bryant and daughter Gianna "Gigi" Bryant.
The court, complete in Lakers purple and gold and with a butterfly-shaped sculpture of Kobe and Gigi courtside, debuted May 1 with a ribbon cutting by Vanessa Bryant, basketball great Nancy Lieberman, Mayor Harry Sidhu and Anaheim Council Members Jose Moreno, Glora Ma'ae and Steve Faessel.
"The Bryant family has always had a special tie to Anaheim."
Harry Sidhu, Anaheim Mayor
They were joined by kids from the Anaheim Family YMCA, which will use the court for its basketball programs.
"The Bryant family has always had a special tie to Anaheim," Mayor Sidhu said. "This court is a lasting legacy of that connection and will introduce a new generation of Anaheim kids to the joy of basketball. We are honored, too, that this court in the heart of our city will inspire girls and women with the amazing contributions to the sport by Nancy Lieberman and her foundation. On behalf of our city, I can't wait to see the kids of Anaheim go hard in the paint on this incredible court."
Pearson Park
Nancy Lieberman Charities
The 50-foot by 84-foot court is known as a Dream Court, donated by Nancy Lieberman Charities. The Anaheim Dream Court is the 110th across the country, joining others in Oakland, Dallas, New Orleans and Milwaukee.
The court is made of special purple and yellow tiles from Sport Court, part of France's Gerflor SAS. Center court reads "Kobe & Gianna Bryant" with butterflies around it.
Lieberman is a sports pioneer, a two-time Olympian, former assistant coach for the Sacramento Kings and a current Big3 championship head coach.
For Vanessa Bryant, who heads the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation, the court at Pearson Park is meaningful. It honors her late husband and daughter, who both tragically died in a 2020 helicopter crash.
Vanessa also spent time at Pearson Park as a cheerleader when she attended St. Boniface Catholic School, which closed in 2006.
The court is the first basketball court at Pearson Park, Anaheim's oldest park. It will be used by the Anaheim Family YMCA, the Anaheim STARS program for youth and by neighborhood kids.
