NBA 2K24 announced Thursday that former Los Angeles Lakers great Kobe Bryant will be the cover athlete for the game, which includes a Kobe Bryant Edition and a Black Mamba Edition.

Preorders begin Friday ahead of the Sept. 8 release on multiple consoles.

“As we celebrate 25 years of NBA 2K with Kobe Bryant, we commemorate his legacy and the generational impact he has had on the game of basketball,” Greg Thomas, president at Visual Concepts, the game’s developer, said in a statement. “While we mark the history of the franchise, NBA 2K24 also looks ahead to the future to bring an innovative leap in technology and the introduction of community-requested features like crossplay.”

The move is the second straight year NBA 2K put a legend on the cover where the player’s jersey number mirrors the year. Michael Jordan was on the cover of the NBA 2K23 Michael Jordan Edition and the NBA 2K23 Championship Edition.

This will be the fourth time Bryant has been on the game’s cover.

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The game also featured The Michael Jordan Challenge that let gamers play out some of the most memorable moments of His Airness’ career.

Bryant famously idolized Jordan and followed in his footsteps on the court, so it feels fitting that he will grace the cover of the edition of the game that follows the NBA 2K23 Michael Jordan Edition.

This is not the first time the Lakers legend has been on the cover of an NBA 2K game.

The game honored Bryant by placing him on the cover of the “Mamba Forever” edition of NBA 2K21 after he died in a helicopter crash along with eight other people in January 2020.

Bryant is one of the best players in NBA history as a Hall of Famer with a resume that included five championships, two NBA Finals MVPs, the 2007-08 MVP, two scoring titles, 15 All-NBA selections, 12 All-Defensive selections and 18 All-Star Game nods.

He played his entire career on the Lakers and famously poured in 60 points in the final game of his career in April 2016. Los Angeles retired his No. 8 and his No. 24 jersey after his retirement.