As she achieved an academic triumph, Kobe Bryant's eldest daughter, Natalia Bryant, kept her father's memory close to her heart. During her graduation ceremony at the University of Southern California (USC) on May 16, where she graduated cum laude, the 22-year-old proudly displayed her late father's iconic "Sheath" logo on her cardinal red and gold stole. The emblem, composed of three sets of mirrored quadrilateral trapezoids, was gracefully positioned on the left side of the stole, above the inscriptions "School of Cinematic Arts," "USC," and the Trojans' battle cry, "Fight On!" Natalia's stole also featured the letters of her sorority, Kappa Kappa Gamma, along with the words "Class of 2025" and "Cum Laude" on the right side. Both Natalia and her mother shared pictures of this memorable moment on Instagram.
Vanessa Bryant captioned a close-up of the stole with the words "4 ever," accompanied by heart hands, a red heart, a crown, and a snake emojis. As the first in her family to attend college, Natalia received an avalanche of congratulatory messages from celebrities such as Michael B. Jordan, Jennifer Garner, Storm Reid, and Ciara. On Vanessa's post, Natalia garnered praise from Jessica Alba, Cat Gasol (wife of Kobe's former Los Angeles Lakers teammate Pau Gasol), and Tina Knowles.
"I am beyond proud of you beautiful @nataliabryant," Beyoncé's mom wrote in the comments, adding, "Vanessa, I saw the love you poured into your daughter. You did a great job."
In an interview with Town & Country published in January 2024, Natalia, who is also the sister to Bianka Bryant, 8, and Capri Bryant, 5, shared her thoughts on legacy. "My main goal is just to be the best version of myself that I possibly can," she said. The now-college graduate elaborated that this means understanding that there are no set expectations for each stage of life. "I just need to know that I have to keep learning, because there's no finish line," she explained. "You just have to keep pushing and being the best person you can be, soaking everything up like a sponge."
Natalia has offered insights into how she motivates herself to step out of her comfort zone. "I'm always scared to take risks," she confided exclusively to E! News the following month. "You have to pull your confidence together and bring it out within you. I think having a great team and support system has been the biggest factor."
