Jewell Loyd proves worthy of 'Gold Mamba' title after Sparks performance on day Joe Bryant dies

Jewell Loyd lived up to her nickname of the "Gold Mamba" on the day Joe Bryant passed - and against the same team he coached in the past.

Although Loyd revealed that she did not play with any "extra motivation" upon hearing of Joe's - the father of Kobe Bryant - passing, she did admit that the best way to honor someone's life and memory is to excel in what she is doing. The WNBA All-Star hinted that her performance against the Sparks could have been directly influenced by Joe's death, especially since she had a close relationship with Kobe.

"I think, obviously, anytime you lose anyone who you're close with or anything like that, it's never easy," Loyd reflected after Seattle's win in Los Angeles. "And the best way to, like you kind of said, the honor and you want us to go out there and play your hardest or whatever it is."

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Along with sending her condolences to the Bryant family, Loyd offered a glimpse of how she spent the day at Crypto.com Arena. In particular, the 30-year-old shared how she took a moment to acknowledge her late friend's statue outside the arena, taking in all he accomplished as the face of the Los Angeles Lakers.

"Before the game, I walked out and took a picture of the Kobe statue, kind of walked around and kind of had a moment," she recalled. "That's my first time seeing it. But for me, it's always very important to come into here and just respect the game. I think that's something that you want to do every time you step on the court is to do that."

And in a packed arena in front of 17,000 screaming fans, Loyd certainly took a leaf out of the "Black Mamba's" book in the Storm's 89-83 win over the Sparks.

The Olympian put up incredible numbers against Los Angeles, scoring 30 points, dishing out seven assists, grabbed six rebounds and had one steal in almost 36 minutes of action. At one point, Loyd and former Sparks star Nneka Ogwumike combined for 20 of the Storm's 25 points in the fourth quarter.

Loyd's outburst was the optimal tuneup for the Olympian, who will soon join Team USA in its quest for a gold medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. Of course, her role will change significantly on a team boasting the likes of Sabrina Ionescu, Kelsey Plum, A'ja Wilson and more, but it is clear what the 30-year-old can bring to the table every night.

The guard is a two-time WNBA champion, helping the Storm win the 2018 and 2020 titles and was the scoring leader during the 2023 season. Additionally, she is a six-time All-Star, an All-Star Game MVP and was selected to the All-WNBA First Team once and to the Second Team twice.

At the end of the day, Loyd's performance will be just one of many in her illustrious career. Still, she continues to play with a fire and passion that exemplifies what the late Lakers legend stood for every time he stepped onto the floor.

That is why the "Gold Mamba" will continue to do what she can to prove to those around basketball that she is deserving of the title the "Black Mamba" bestowed on her. Despite how she struggled to make her name stand out in the early years of her career, she has more than lived up to the title, which shows just how much the Bryant family means to her.

"I have a lot of respect for the Bryant family, obviously, and I want to make sure that I'm doing exactly what Kobe told me to do. I have so much respect for my family and what the legacy that they're building," she concluded.