Kobe has great white shark named in his honor
Chris Elise / National Basketball Association / Getty
The Marine Conservation Science Institute, a nonprofit organization based in Fallbrook, California, added to the many Kobe Bryant tributes this week by naming a great white shark after the Los Angeles Lakers legend.
The organization's director, Dr. Michael Domeier, announced on Instagram that a Guadalupe Island shark has been named Kobe Bryant and reallocated to the No. 24 spot in the company's photo database.
Bryant visited Mexico's Guadalupe Island to dive with great white sharks in 2013 while recovering from a torn Achilles tendon, according to Pete Thomas of For The Win. Shark Diver CEO Martin Graf, who accompanied Bryant on the dive, said Kobe wore his Nike sneakers because his feet were too big for the wetsuit booties.