Michael Jordan to Present Kobe Bryant at HOF Induction Ceremony in May

Get the tissues ready ...

When Kobe Bryant is inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in May, the man presenting him will be none other than his hero ... Michael Jordan.

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame just announced the official plans for the May 15 event at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut.

Kobe -- along with NBA legends Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett -- is set to be inducted into the class of 2020 (which was delayed due to COVID).

The HOF says members of the 2020 class were each asked "to select previous inductees to accompany and present them to their peers" during the ceremony.

In the case of Kobe, who passed away in January 2020, the decision was left for his family -- and they chose MJ.

Everyone knows ... Kobe modeled his entire career after Jordan and they grew close over the years.

In fact, after Kobe's death, Michael Jordan took the mic at Staples Center and paid tribute to Mamba in a very emotional and memorable speech to the L.A. crowd.

"When Kobe Bryant died, a piece of me died," MJ said at the time.

Here is the rest of the list of HOFers and their presenters ...

Patrick Baumann, presented by Russ Granik (’13), Vlade Divac (’19)

Kobe Bryant, presented by Michael Jordan (’09)

Tamika Catchings, presented by Alonzo Mourning (’14), Dawn Staley (’13)

Tim Duncan, presented by David Robinson (’09)

Kevin Garnett, presented by Isiah Thomas (’00)

Kim Mulkey, presented by Michael Jordan (’09)

Barbara Stevens, presented by Geno Auriemma (’06), Muffet McGraw (’17)

Eddie Sutton, presented by John Calipari (’15), Bill Self (’17), Sidney Moncrief (’19)