Lakers Style: Snoop Dogg’s Retirement Gift to Kobe Is This Ridiculous ’60s Pontiac

         

Snoop Dogg is officially the biggest Lakers fan of all time. The rapper paid homage to the Los Angeles basketball team — and one of its most famous players — by giving a retiring superstar a tricked-out, Lakers–themed car as a farewell gift.

According to ESPN, three months after his final pro basketball game, Snoop Dogg gifted Kobe Bryant with a custom purple and gold ’64 Chevy Impala convertible to honor his 20 seasons as a player for the Los Angeles Lakers. Snoop Dogg had the hood of the pricey custom car painted with pictures of Lakers legends, including Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. But most importantly, the custom ride also features a supersized picture of Snoop wearing a Lakers jersey.

The gift that keeps on giving. Enjoy it mamba ????✨????????????????

A photo posted by snoopdogg (@snoopdogg) on Jul 6, 2016 at 5:35pm PDT

It’s no surprise that Kobe Bryant promptly hit social media to show off a pic of the amazing gift he was given from Snoop Dogg. Kobe posted a snap of him and Snoop standing by the purple and gold convertible car, describing the over-the-top gift as “unbelievable.” Snoop also shared the snap.

A photo posted by snoopdogg (@snoopdogg) on Jul 7, 2016 at 12:57am PDT

Snoop Dogg is a well-known basketball superfan and is an avid follower of the Lakers. Over the years, Snoop has hosted several charity basketball events, including one earlier this year to help raise money for the Flint water crisis.
But there’s no doubt that the Lakers hold a special place in Snoop Dogg’s heart. Longtime fans may recall that the “Gin and Juice” rapper even showed off his Lakers-themed basketball court during a tour of his California mansion on MTV’s Cribs several years ago.
Snoop Dogg’s love for the L.A. Lakers is legendary. He has been very vocal about his fandom and can often be spotted in the audience during televised games. Last year, Snoop even tried to petition a fellow Long Beach native, Russell Westbrook, to “come home” to play for the iconic basketball team. Snoop (or, more likely, one of his assistants) even posted a Photoshopped an Instagram pic of Westbrook wearing a Lakers jersey.

To show his love for the iconic basketball team, Snoop Dogg and The Game also teamed up with the SKEETOX Band to record the official “Purp & Yellow LA Leakers Skeetox Remix” music video. The clip also features the Los Angeles Lakers, Wiz Khalifa, DJ Skee, and a whole lot of purple and yellow.

Of course, Snoop Dogg was front and center at Kobe’s last Lakers game back in April, when the retiring legend scored a whopping 60 points. Snoop was surrounded by fellow superfans Jack Nicholson, Kanye West, Jay-Z, and more as the basketball great said goodbye to 20 seasons as a member of the iconic Los Angeles franchise. Snoop later told talk show host Jimmy Kimmel that he felt like he was “in a whole other galaxy” while watching that final game. Snoop also served as a DJ after the game, and he was the last person to leave the venue.
More recently, Snoop Dogg appeared on Kimmel’s late night talk show — wearing a Lakers jersey, of course — to deliver a very important message during the NBA finals. Snoop Dogg gave fans the “Hizzistory of Bizzasketball.” The hilarious clip showed the early days of the game — way back in 1954!
In a humorous overview, Snoop pointed out how “white” the game used to be.
“This is before black men were able to play basketball,” Snoop explained as he narrated a retro black and white clip of players shooting hoops. “As you see, there’s no jumping, no dunking, no heroics.”
Snoop also made fun of the “granny-style” free-throws back in the day.
Take a look at the video below to see Snoop Dogg’s basketball “hizzistory” lesson.