‘Man, not Kobe.’ Celebrities, fans react to the death of basketball star Kobe Bryant
Basketball superstar Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna were among nine people killed when a helicopter crashed into a Calabasas hill near Malibu, Calif., on Sunday, McClatchy News reported.
Kobe Bryant was 41. Gianna Bryant was 13.
As news of the longtime Los Angeles Laker’s death spread, celebrities and fans alike took to Twitter to share tributes to the five-time NBA championship winner.
“I’m sick right now,” former Laker Shaquille O’Neal wrote.
“Man not Kobe,” Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes wrote.
Tom Brady echoed his sentiment writing, “We miss you already Kobe.”
Actor Jack Nicholson, well-known for being an avid Lakers fan and frequently seen court-side, expressed his heartbreak in an interview with CBS Los Angeles.
“My reaction is the same as almost all of L.A.,” Nicholson told the outlet. “Where we think everything’s solid, there’s a big hole in the wall. I was used to seeing and talking to Kobe that — it kills you. It’s just a terrible event.”
He also recounted the first time he met Bryant.
“It was in [Madison Square Garden] in New York, and I offered him a basketball and asked him, did he want me to autograph it for him. He looked at me like I was crazy,” Nicholson told CBS.
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Kobe Bryant was drafted right out of high school by the Charlotte Hornets in June 1996 at the age of 17. At the time, he was the youngest player in NBA history, ESPN reported.
He was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers less than a month later, according to CNN.
In his 20 year career with the Lakers, the 6’ 6” powerhouse won five NBA Championships and holds the fourth spot for all-time scoring in the NBA with 33,643 points. He was an 18-time NBA All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist, ESPN reported.
Bryant married Vanessa Laine in 2001 and had four daughters, McClatchy News reported. The couple’s youngest daughter, Capri, was born in July.
This story was originally published January 26, 2020 at 4:09 PM with the headline "‘Man, not Kobe.’ Celebrities, fans react to the death of basketball star Kobe Bryant."