3:36
- ABC News
- January 28, 2020
World looks for answers in Kobe Bryant's death
Tributes have been pouring in from all over the world for the deceased athlete.
Video by Chris Cirillo
Two other people aboard the doomed flight were identified as Sarah and Peyton Chester, ABC News has confirmed.
Bryant and the others who perished were flying from Orange County, where Bryant has a home in Newport Park, to the Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks, a sports facility where the former LA Lakers' star hosted basketball clinics. Bryant's daughter's basketball team was scheduled to play in the Mamba Cup, a youth basketball tournament that's named after Bryant's moniker.
The Lakers game against the Los Angeles Clippers scheduled for Tuesday night at the Staples Center has been postponed \"out of respect for the Lakers organization, which is deeply grieving the tragic loss of Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and seven other people in a helicopter crash on Sunday,\" the NBA said in a statement. The game will be rescheduled for a later date.
Meanwhile, tributes have been pouring in from all over the world. Bryant's image was splashed across newspapers Monday morning as basketball fans and beyond begin to mourn the loss of the hoops legend.
Shaquille O'Neal, Bryant's former LA Lakers teammate who won three consecutive NBA championships with him in 2000, 2001 and 2002, posted a picture of the two embracing, and said that \"there are no words to express the pain I’m going through now with this tragic and sad moment.\"
View this post on InstagramA post shared by DR. SHAQUILLE O'NEAL Ed.D. (@shaq) on Jan 26, 2020 at 1:33pm PST
Another close friend and retired basketball star Dwyane Wade paid an emotional tribute to Bryant on Instagram.
View this post on InstagramA post shared by dwyanewade (@dwyanewade) on Jan 26, 2020 at 4:47pm PST
Basketball legend and principal owner of the Charlotte Hornets Michael Jordan issued a statement saying that Bryant \"was like a little brother to me.\"
Statement from Michael Jordan: pic.twitter.com/oI7w6e7HLI
— Estee Portnoy (@esteep) January 26, 2020
Bryant was drafted to the NBA out of high school in 1996 and spent his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers, winning five NBA championships. He was awarded NBA MVP in 2008 and NBA Finals MVP in 2009 and 2010.
Bryant won gold medals as a member of the U.S. men's basketball team in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing and the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
Bryant's career was marred, however, during a 2005 trial when he was accused of sexual assault by an employee at a Vail, Colorado, hotel. Bryant always denied the encounter was nonconsensual and the case was later dismissed after the victim said she did not want to testify and the two parties settled a civil suit.
LeBron James surpassed Bryant on the all-time scoring list on Saturday during the Lakers' game against the Philadelphia 76ers.
\"I'm happy just to be in any conversation with Kobe Bean Bryant -- one of the all-time greatest basketball players to ever play, one of the all-time greatest Lakers,\" James told reporters after the game. \"The man got two jerseys hanging up in Staples Center. It's just crazy.\"
In 2018, Bryant won an Academy Award for his animated short \"Dear Basketball,\" which is based on a poem he wrote in 2015 when he announced his retirement.
ABC News' Julia Jacobo, Joshua Hoyos and Tom Llamas contributed to this report.
","canonicalUrl":"https://abcnews.com/US/kobe-bryants-sudden-death-leaves-world-grieving-searching/story?id=68558512","legacySlug":"/news/story/kobe-bryants-sudden-death-leaves-world-grieving-searching-68558512","noIndexNoFollow":false},"publishTime":"01:16","publishDate":"01-28-2020","updatedTime":"10:52","updatedDate":"02-06-2020","socialImage":{"alt":"A fan places flowers to mourn former Los Angeles Lakers basketball player Kobe Bryant following his death overnight in the US, near the \"House of Kobe\" gym built in honour of his 2016 visit to the Philippines, in Manila on January 27, 2020.","credit":"Maria Tan/AFP via Getty Images","ratio":"16x9","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/US/Bryant-Tribute-Mural_hpMain_20200127-063135_16x9_1600.jpg","width":992,"height":558},"datePublished":"1/28/2020 01:16:00 GMT","video":{"live":false,"id":68558512,"headline":"World looks for answers in Kobe Bryant's death","mediaAssetTitle":"HAWORTH_KOBE BRYANT DEATH MONDAY_200127","description":"Tributes have been pouring in from all over the world for the deceased athlete.","duration":"3:36","posterImg":{"url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","width":608,"height":342},"video":{"feed":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2020/01/200127_wn_llamas2_631_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8"},"playlist":["132488083","132306053","132266872"]},"relatedItems":[{"contentType":"video","date":"April 29, 2026","headline":"Grand jury indicts former FBI director over Instagram post","section":"News","slug":"/video/132488083","id":"132488083","image":{"alt":"VIDEO: Grand jury indicts former FBI director over Instagram post","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","width":384,"height":384},"images":{"alt":"VIDEO: Grand jury indicts former FBI director over Instagram post","credit":"ABCNews.com","crops":[{"16x9":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_16x9_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_16x9_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"9x16":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_9x16_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_9x16_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"1x1":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_1x1_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_1x1_1600.jpg"}}]}},{"contentType":"video","date":"April 23, 2026","headline":"Trump orders Navy to 'shoot and kill' any boat laying mines in Strait of Hormuz","section":"News","slug":"/video/132306053","id":"132306053","image":{"alt":"VIDEO: Trump orders Navy to 'shoot and kill' any boat laying mines in Strait of Hormuz","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","width":384,"height":384},"images":{"alt":"VIDEO: Trump orders Navy to 'shoot and kill' any boat laying mines in Strait of Hormuz","credit":"ABCNews.com","crops":[{"16x9":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_16x9_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_16x9_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"9x16":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_9x16_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_9x16_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"1x1":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_1x1_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_1x1_1600.jpg"}}]}},{"contentType":"video","date":"April 22, 2026","headline":"Fallout after Fed nominee grilled on Capitol Hill","section":"News","slug":"/video/132266872","id":"132266872","image":{"alt":"VIDEO: Fallout after Fed nominee grilled on Capitol Hill","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","width":384,"height":384},"images":{"alt":"VIDEO: Fallout after Fed nominee grilled on Capitol Hill","credit":"ABCNews.com","crops":[{"16x9":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_16x9_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_16x9_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"9x16":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_9x16_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_9x16_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"1x1":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_1x1_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_1x1_1600.jpg"}}]}}],"relatedContentSection":"news","schemaContent":{"name":"World looks for answers in Kobe Bryant's death","description":"Tributes have been pouring in from all over the world for the deceased athlete.","duration":"3:36","uploadDate":"01-28-2020","publication":"01-28-2020","images":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","url":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2020/01/200127_wn_llamas2_631_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","contentUrl":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2020/01/200127_wn_llamas2_631_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","link":"https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/kobe-bryants-sudden-death-leaves-world-grieving-searching-68558512"}},"playlist":[{"id":"132569874","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132567885","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132510121","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132473181","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132497933","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132281378","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132283010","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132273278","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132231169","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132206748","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132200241","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132054443","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132054798","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132033010","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131912713","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131830583","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131834976","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131554765","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131554815","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131543053","contentType":"story","section":"news"}],"kvps":{"pgtyp":"article","lang":"en","sp":"goodmorningamerica","programmatic":"true","bundleId":"com.abcnews"}},"analytics":{"accountID":"wdgnewwdgnewgmaweb","ns":"gma","pageName":"gma:news:video","pageType":"video","globalSpecVersion":"v1.08","siteDifferentiator":"gma:site","tagID":"g_page01","userABCookie":"0","section":"news","title":"World looks for answers in Kobe Bryant's death","pubTime":"20:16","pubDate":"01-27-2020","modTime":"05:52","modDate":"02-06-2020","taxonomyTags":"none","id":68558512,"editorialOtherSubjects":"","wordCount":"none","columns":"none","authors":"Chris Cirillo ","authorsUnit":"none","authorsBureau":"none","subBrand":"Good Morning America","provider":"Good Morning America","videoName":"World looks for answers in Kobe Bryant's death","mediaAssetTitle":"HAWORTH_KOBE BRYANT DEATH MONDAY_200127","videoId":68558512,"mediaOnPage":"video","legacySlug":"/news/story/kobe-bryants-sudden-death-leaves-world-grieving-searching-68558512"},"taboola":{}},"request":{"headers":{},"httpVersion":"1.1","method":"GET","url":"/video/68558512","vary":{"host":"www.goodmorningamerica.com","cached":true,"path":"/video/68558512","forwarded-proto":"https","device":"desktop","userab":"0"}},"viewport":{"width":1260,"height":0},"user":{}};