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Kobe Bryant's public memorial service set to begin at Staples Center

The service will begin at 10 a.m. local time.
Posted at 6:13 AM, Feb 24, 2020
and last updated 2020-02-24 23:41:14-05

NBA greatKobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, will be honored at a public memorial service Monday, nearly one month after the helicopter crash that took their lives.

Monday's service is set to begin at 10 a.m. local time in downtown Los Angeles at the Staples Center -- home of Bryant's longtime team, the Lakers.

You can watch the service live on ABC News Live. ABC News' coverage will begin at 9:30 a.m. local time.

There is significance in the chosen date. It reflects the basketball jersey numbers worn by Kobe (No. 24) and Gianna (No. 2). Bryant's wife, Vanessa Bryant, also noted that her husband was a Laker for 20 years and the two were together for 20 years.

Some fans were able to buy tickets for the memorial online. Police have urged members of the public without tickets to avoid the Staples Center area.

Kobe Bryant and Gianna were among the nine people killed in the Jan. 26 helicopter crash in Southern California while en route to Bryant's Mamba Sports Academy.

"I'm trying to process Kobe being gone but my body refuses to accept my Gigi will never come back to me," Vanessa Bryant wrote on Instagram earlier this month. "I wish they were here and this nightmare would be over."

Kobe Bryant leaves behind three other daughters.

"Mad I'm not with Kobe and Gigi but thankful I'm here with Natalia, Bianka and Capri," Vanessa Bryant wrote. "Praying for all of the victims of this horrible tragedy."

ABC News' William Mansell contributed to this report.