Sunny Hostin and her daughter Paloma have a special connection to the late Kobe and Gianna Bryant. The View co-host is a baller mom to a 13-year-old girl who has dreams of playing in the WNBA. After the tragic helicopter crash that took the life of Kobe and Gigi broke, the news was hard for her daughter to hear. “For her, I think to know that a 13-year-old baller couldn’t fulfill that dream of playing in the WNBA really made her think about mortality,” she tells HOLA! USA. “It really made her think about making sure that she takes each day seriously.”
Paloma, who also took part in Made Hoops tournaments similar to Gigi, has the support of her loved ones. “I told her we’re a family, and we’re here,” Sunny adds. “You’re never promised tomorrow, so you have to be kind, be honest, be earnest and tell people that you love that you love them. Show your love. Love is really a verb.”
Sunny is also there for her mini-me, who plays on three teams, when it comes to their mutual love of basketball. “I played basketball myself, so yes, I’m embarrassingly a basketball mom. I’m the one who taught her how to play,” the lawyer says. “My poor daughter, she looks to me for approval. She knows when she’s made a mistake; she looks to me for confirmation that she made that mistake, and I’m like ‘Yeah, you did travel; that was a foul.’ She also looks to me when she hits the three for affirmation. We have a really beautiful relationship, it’s lovely.”