Not Juju Watkins, but 1 USC Star on Kobe Bryant’s Eldest Daughter’s Mind as Family Joins March Madness

They may have lost their two superstars, but Kobe Bryant‘s family has not distanced itself from basketball. The Bryant family was in attendance to support the USC women’s basketball team. The event witnessed Vanessa Bryant along with her three daughters, Natalia, Bianka, and Capri. An interesting factor was Natalia’s choice of highlight from the game, a moment which many cheered.

It is a widely known fact that Juju Watkins is one of the Trojans’ most popular players. However, Kobe Bryant’s eldest daughter shared India Otto‘s layup from the game on her Instagram story. Notably, Otto has been an old friend of the Bryants and Kobe even used to train her. She had once heavily praised the Black Mamba during an interview on ‘GameChangeNation’.

“Kobe was a mentor and friend of mine for over 10 years. So I was so grateful to know him on a personal level. He had such a special ability to make you feel like you are the most important person in the room”. Otto believes that while this ability is difficult for anyone to have, for someone at Kobe’s level, it is even harder to expect.

India Otto’s bond with the Bryant family can be seen from the fact that she got her jersey number changed to 2 from 30 in Gianna Bryant’s honor. It is worth mentioning that Gigi used to don the #2 jersey and was considered a promising upcoming soccer talent. Therefore, Natalia’s emotions watching Otto play are understandable.

Natalia tagged Otto in her social media story featuring the 23-year-old’s layup during today’s game. Notably, Otto was in the game for just two minutes, during which she scored 5 points.

Apart from the Kobe Bryant family factor, there was another reason why India Otto’s time on the court was so special

Trojans’ 1st round in the NCAA tournament concluded with them registering an 87-55 victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders. Both McKenzie Forbes and Juju Watkins scored 23 points! Even the number of assists for both was the same. Watkins just had more rebounds. However, the other key highlight of the match was India Otto, even though she was there for barely minutes. Even the crowd had a loud cheer for the 23-year-old.

The crowd going berserk and Kobe Bryant’s eldest daughter choosing that person as the highlight of the match cannot be for nothing. Apart from the tribute to Gigi by Otto, the major reason for the overwhelming support for Otto was because she has been a rarely used USC reserve. She has only played 26 games during her 5 years for USC.

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However, the team still chose to involve her in one of the major moments. The gesture reflected a human side of the game and the underlying bonds in this cut-throat competitive environment of the sport. And Otto did not let down the team, as she went for a clean layup and a 3-pointer during her 2-minute display. The crowd and the USC bench welcomed both of Otto’s highlight moments with a massive cheer.

Now, the USC Trojans will face Kansas Jayhawks in their next round of the NCAA tournament. And the fans may hope to see more of India Otto’s play. Let us know your views on this in the comments.

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