Kobe Bryant, daughter, seven others perish in crash.
It’s been nearly a month since the sports world suffered a shocking, unthinkable tragedy. This is not going to be easy to write about trust me on that, folks. I’m not sure I’m capable nor qualified to be writing this particular piece, but I will do my absolute best. By now, most everyone is aware that Kobe Bryant his thirteen year-old daughter Gianna and seven others all perished in a helicopter crash. Like the rest of the world I was in shock when I heard the news. Kobe Bryant, dead? There were no words, absolutely no words at the time I could find to properly convey my feelings about what I had heard.
Bryant, his daughter and the others were on their way to Thousand Oaks, to his Mamba Sports Academy. Gianna was expected to play in a basketball tournament, a tournament where Bryant was also expected to coach. The copter which was flying in foggy weather, crashed in Calabasas, California just minutes from Thousand Oaks. Kobe had apparently been using a helicopter for years during his days with the Lakers flying to and from games as a way to beat the heavy Los Angeles traffic. Still, it feels surreal. It feels surreal to be writing about the fact that a legend is no longer here with us.
Kobe Bryant one of the greatest basketball players of all time, gone too soon at 41.
The other victims
Kobe and his daughter weren’t the only ones in the helicopter when it went down that fateful morning. Seven other souls were on board with them as well. John Altobelli, a baseball coach for 27 seasons at Orange Coast College with more than 400 wins to his name, wife Keri and daughter Alyssa were aboard. Altobelli lead the Pirates to four California state junior college titles. He was named coach of the year in 2019. Sarah and Payton Chester were two other victims. 38 year-old Christina Mauser, an assistant girls basketball coach at Harbor Day School in Corona Del Mar, California was another victim. Bryant chose Mauser as an assistant coach for his daughter Gianna’s Mamba Academy team. She left behind a husband and three children.
Finally, the pilot Ara Zobyan, someone Kobe obviously trusted to fly the helicopter that day also perished in the crash and subsequent brush fire that ensued. Nine lives. Nine lives cut drastically short. Some of those lives were just beginning, others were most likely no where close to being near the end. Perhaps, that’s one of the things I find to be so heartbreaking. Each of these individuals still feels like they had more to do, more to accomplish and now they won’t have the opportunity to do so.
Life after basketball
When Kobe Bryant retired from the NBA in 2016, many wondered how the next chapter in his life would unfold. Athletes often have trouble staying away from a sport they’ve dedicated their lives too and for someone like Bryant who had given twenty years of his life to the game of basketball, many thought it would be difficult for him to distance himself completely. However, that turned out not to be the case. Bryant was able to focus on a number of projects. I mean, how many people can say they won an Oscar their first time out? Kobe did that.
He won that award in 2018, for a short film he did entitled “Dear basketball,” which served as a love letter to the game he had played for so long. Again, how many people can say they won an Oscar on their first try? I can assure you not many. That’s one reason Kobe was so remarkable. He approached these other ventures off the court with the same relentless determination he displayed on the court. For Bryant it was all about telling stories and that’s one thing he did better than anyone else. Tell stories. Stories that would inspire not only this generation, but countless others as well.
A flawed man who became a legend and icon
Have you ever heard the phrase: “Hero’s come and go, but legends are forever?” Well, there’s no phrase, no saying that describes one Kobe Bean Bryant, better. Legends are defined by their legacies and Kobe’s legacy was more than basketball. Indeed, he was a true real-life hero who ultimately reached legendary status, but make no mistake he was far from perfect. Like every hero, every legend he as we all do, had a number of flaws. You can’t appreciate a person’s legacy without examining it from all aspects.
I’m referring of course, to the 2003 sexual assault case Bryant went through in Colorado. Often times this part of Bryant’s life is glossed over. No one likes to talk about it. Kobe managed to put it behind him and would go on to forge a legacy that few have achieved in professional sports.
Mourning and remembering
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No one will ever forget the day January 26, 2020. The world changed and ever since Kobe’s tragic passing the world has been in mourning. Fans, celebrities the Lakers organization their players and the NBA have all paid tribute to this man who inspired so many. Honestly, it’s quite difficult to put into context the impact Bryant made, an impact which expanded far beyond the reaches of the NBA. There will never be another like him. He will be missed.
Kobe Bryant, basketball icon, legend, gone but not forgotten.
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