Kobe Bryant is the NBA 2K24 cover athlete for fourth time, includes Black Mamba Edition

The "Mamba Mentality" will again be featured in 2K, as NBA Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant will be the cover athlete for NBA 2K24.

2K released two covers featuring Bryant, with the Kobe Bryant Edition featuring the 5-time NBA champion when he wore his #8 jersey, and the Black Mamba Edition, featuring Bryant later in his career. Pre-orders for the game will be available beginning Friday, July 7, with the game's release date to be announced later.

"Sharing the Mamba Mentality with the next generation" 2K said in a tweet.

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This will be the fourth time Bryant will be the cover athlete for the video game franchise, having first appeared on NBA 2K10. He was a special edition cover athlete on NBA 2K17. After his death in 2020, 2K released a Mamba Forever Edition for NBA 2K21 to honor the late Lakers star.

A 20-year NBA veteran, Bryant won five championships with the Los Angeles Lakers and was a two-time Finals MVP. He won the 2007-08 MVP award, and scored 33,643 points in his career, the fourth-most in NBA history.

Bryant was part of the 2020 class of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kobe Bryant is the featured athlete for NBA 2K24: See the cover