Legendary basketball player Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna were among nine people who were killed Sunday in a helicopter crash in the foggy Calabasas mountains.
The helicopter crashed about 30 miles northwest of Los Angeles. Bryant’s daughter’s teammate and the teammate’s parent reportedly were the other people dead as the Sikorsky S-76 helicopter crashed after being in distress, according to eyewitnesses.
Bryant, one of greatest basketball players of all time, played for Los Angeles Laker and won five NBA championships. He retired in 2016.
Kareem Abdul Jabbar, one of the top basketball players in the history of the sport, paid tributes to Bryant, calling him an incredible family man, who inspired a generation of young athletes.
Fellow Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar reacted to the death of Kobe Bryant with an emotional video message:
"Kobe was an incredible family man, he loved his wife and daughters. … He inspired a whole generation of young athletes." https://t.co/QLyuZrFPGE pic.twitter.com/0YL4Ss9M0a
— ABC News (@ABC) January 27, 2020
His death at the age of 41 shocked American sport lovers and millions of basketball followers around the world.
NBA players and coaches remembering their favorite Kobe moments is the best thing you will see all day
RIP to the Greatest Laker of all time 🐐💯 pic.twitter.com/we3tk5nl4M
— Mamba Insider (@Mamba_Insider) January 27, 2020
Artists attending the Grammys 2020 dedicated the night to Bryant.
alicia keys and boyz II men sang “it’s so hard to say goodbye to yesterday” in tribute to kobe bryant and his family at the #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/ENdMou1MYl
— Genius (@Genius) January 27, 2020
Tonight is for kobe, Lizzo said.
Lizzo opened the Grammys with a performance and a brief tribute to Kobe Bryant: “Tonight is for Kobe.”
Follow our live coverage of the show. https://t.co/XnXzSGv3Vb
— The New York Times (@nytimes) January 27, 2020
NBA great Michael Jordan said words cannot describe his pain at the loss of Bryant.
A statement from Michael Jordan regarding Kobe Bryant's death. pic.twitter.com/8fNZcQQ3pF
— CBS Sports HQ (@CBSSportsHQ) January 26, 2020
Football players also paid tributes to the memory of Bryant.
Football stars of past and present have paid their respects after the death of the basketball great#SBSTheWorldGamehttps://t.co/LIdn0am4zO
— SBS – The World Game (@TheWorldGame) January 27, 2020
[…] Kobe Bryant, daughter die in helicopter crash […]