The debate about who’s the greatest of all time (or GOAT) among basketball players typically comes down to two specific people: Michael Jordan and LeBron James. Clearly, both of them are legends and have had their respective impacts on the game. However, not everyone sees eye to eye on how “His Airness” and “King James” stack up against each other. I’m personally of the belief that Jordan is the one, and it seems Dennis Rodman is of that thinking, too. But there’s another legend Rodman gives credit to as well.

It’s no secret that Dennis Rodman has a major connection to Michael Jordan, as the two were teammates while playing for the Chicago Bulls. So Rodman had a front-row seat to Jordan’s iconic performances on the court. The hall of famer known as “The Worm” was recently asked about his ex-teammate and LeBron James while appearing on N3ON’s recent livestream, which is on YouTube. A fan specifically asked Rodman for his thoughts on Jordan or James being the greatest of all time, and he didn’t hesitate when answering:

The former Detroit Piston definitely isn’t the first person to have named “Air Jordan” the best of all time, and that’s completely understandable. Throughout his storied career, Jordan led the Bulls to six NBA Finals between 1991 and 1998, and the teams emerged victorious every time. On top of that, Jordan earned other accolades like five league MVP awards, 14 All-Star team selections, 10 All-NBA First Team selections and more. So it’s perfectly reasonable for Jordan to be tagged with such a major distinction.

I love that Dennis Rodman has no problem showering praise on players, and that especially appears to be true with those who competed with. Several years back, Rodman hyped up Scottie Pippen – another Bulls teammate – who he views as a friend. (Rodman has also expressed hope that Jordan and Pippen will reconcile after their feud.) All of that aside, though, Rodman also believes a certain Los Angeles Lakers icon should also be in the GOAT discussion alongside Jordan and LeBron James:

The late Kobe Bryant is still highly regarded as one of the most talented athletes to ever pick up a basketball. Bryant’s list of accolades includes five championship titles, 18 All-Star appearances and an MVP title among other honors. Despite all of that, I’d argue that Bryant – who was famously known as “The Black Mamba” – isn’t brought up within the GOAT conversation as often as he should be. While Rodman previously opined that Air Jordan was more driven than Bryant, his GOAT point still stands.

Of course, LeBron James does indeed deserve his flowers as well, given the championships, MVP awards and All-Star appearances he’s racked up. James is also the highest-scoring player in NBA history, having surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Still, I have to give the edge to Michael Jordan, as I think he had a unique mentality that helped push him beyond his peers. Dennis Rodman clearly recognizes Jordan’s skills, and I know he and I aren’t the only ones.

Hear more from Dennis Rodman as well as Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and more by streaming the ESPN docuseries The Last Dance. The 10-part saga is available to stream with a Netflix subscription.

One of the reasons that the trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs has been of such interest is that the accusations surround activities that allegedly took place alongside some of the massive celebrity-filled parties that Diddy was known for throwing. With that being the case, many have expected the names of celebs to feature during the trial, but that’s not happening in the way we’ve expected, as Michael Jordan and two other NBA legends were recently namechecked in testimony in an unexpected way.

The focus of the latest week of testimonies has centered on the accuser using the pseudonym “Jane,” an ex-girlfriend of Diddy’s who has claimed to have direct knowledge of the alleged “freak off” parties that are the focus of the sexual assault and racketeering charges he's facing. One of the more unusual revelations to surface surrounds the nicknames that Diddy allegedly used for himself, Jane, and a male escort that Jane says she regularly had sex with at Diddy’s request.

How Michael Jordan’s Name Came Up At Diddy’s Trial

According to Jane (via the Daily Mail), Diddy would call the three of them the “trifecta,” and also used NBA stars as inspiration for nicknames for the three of them. Diddy himself was Michael Jordan, Jane was Kobe Bryant, while the escort was called Shaq.

The Daily Mail acquired images of Kobe Bryant attending Diddy’s 50th birthday party in 2020, while also noting that the rapper performed at a Super Bowl weekend event that same year, which was hosted by Shaq. So it appears that two of the three NBA stars mentioned ran in the same circles as Diddy.

However, whether Diddy and Michael Jordan knew each other is unclear. The primary NBA player whose name has come up in association with Diddy is Lebron James, though there have been no accusations of wrongdoing where that athlete is concerned, either.

How Other Celebrities Have Factored Into Diddy’s Trial

This isn’t the first time that a celebrity’s name has appeared at Diddy’s trial in an unusual way. Eyebrows were raised earlier in the trial when Brad Pitt’s name came up during testimony. However, Pitt has never attended one of Diddy’s parties. The actor was mentioned due to an incident with Diddy and then girlfriend, Cassie Ventura, at the Cannes Film Festival, during the premiere of one of Pitt’s movies.

The biggest name to testify in court, outside of Cassie Ventura herself, is rapper Kid Cudi. Cudi testified regarding the firebombing of his car in 2012. The rapper believes Diddy orchestrated the attack due to the fact that Cudi had been dating Ventua at the time.

Considering the celebrities that are known to have been associated with Diddy, it’s likely we’ll be hearing even more famous names as the trial continues. However, as this shows, being referenced in court certainly is not an indication of any wrongdoing.

Move over, Drake and Kendrick Lamar, it looks like it's the NBA's turn to have a big feud. We've seen a lot of back-and-forth between Stephen A. Smith and LeBron James since their on-court confrontation in early March, and it continues to pull in other people. After Richard Jefferson got in the mix, the situation escalated drastically to the point that NBA commissioner Adam Silver is now discussing it.

The head of the NBA is now fielding questions about a feud between an ESPN pundit and one of its greatest stars of all time after Stephen A. Smith's latest response went viral and talked about Kobe Bryant's death, as well as LeBron's former teammate, Dwyane Wade.

Stephen A. Smith's Response To LeBron James Included References To Kobe Bryant's Death And Dwyane Wade

I don't think anyone expected Stephen A. Smith to keep quiet after LeBron James appeared on The Pat McAfee Show and took shots at him. What was surprising was what Smith said in response and how he brought other players into the conversation.

Here's just a snippet from his long rant on ESPN's First Take in which he talked about James allegedly skipping Kobe Bryant's funeral and Dwyane Wade's Hall of Fame induction ceremony:

These two particular comments drew a heavy reaction from the sports world, who added context to the situation. Multiple outlets reported at the time that LeBron James was in attendance at Kobe Bryant's Memorial service, despite no photos of the athlete.

Additionally, James missed Wade's HOF induction as it occurred two weeks after his son Bronny James suffered cardiac arrest, and Stephen A. Smith would probably know that because he was one of the many who offered condolences to the athlete after it happened.

This was all part of a long response that hit on everything from calling LeBron James a liar to claiming this is all tied to Michael Jordan. Stephen A. Smith closed by noting that his position at ESPN is secure, saying he signed a 5-year $100 million contract with the network. Hell, we might even see him team up with Charles Barkley next season when Inside The NBA joins ESPN, so I don't think his job is on the line for this.

However, the NBA commissioner, Adam Silver, is now getting in on this conversation.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver Shared His Thoughts On The Feud

After quite a personal attack, it was inevitable that the media would turn to NBA commissioner Adam Silver to get his take on the situation. Silver conceded he didn't know all the details of what was said, but wasn't a fan of what he's heard thus far (via @BrettSiegel):

While I assume Adam Silver isn't worried about this escalating to a point where LeBron James is dissing Stephen A. Smith during the Super Bowl halftime show, he made it clear this kind of feud is not something he wants to see. Smith is poking the bear here, and with incredibly personal attacks in this latest round, it seems possible that James will respond.

Stephen A. Smith appears on First Take on ESPN on weekdays at 10:00 a.m. ET. It's possible there might be more drama between him and LeBron James as the latter prepares for the NBA postseason, but we'll just have to wait and see.

Several years ago, the world lost a sports icon in Kobe Bryant, who tragically died at the age of 41 alongside his 13-year-old daughter, Giana, and seven others. The late NBA star’s wife, Vanessa Bryant, has since honored her husband and daughter, paying tribute to them on numerous occasions (That includes their birthdays and the Kobe statue unveiling earlier this year.) Unfortunately, the Bryant family just recently experienced yet another major loss, as Joe Bryant has died. After the news was made public, Vanessa commented on her father-in-law’s death with a bittersweet and poignant statement.

Those who are aware of Kobe Bryant’s personal life may know that the late athlete had complex relationships with his parents, especially his father. By extension, Vanessa apparently didn’t have much contact with her in-laws, either. Despite that, the message that she shared in Joe’s honor on her Instagram stories conveys a sense of warmth and a slight tinge of regret:

Many would likely agree with the assertion that it’s not always easy to say goodbye to a family member, especially one with which a person had an estranged relationship. Considering that in the context of the Bryant family, it’s sweet to see that Vanessa took the time to memorialize Joe by way of that statement.

Joe Bryant, a Philadelphia native, was a highly regarded basketball player in his youth. Given the nickname “Jellybean,” the small/power forward was drafted by the Golden State Warriors with the 14th pick in the 1975 NBA Draft. He’d ultimately play eight years in the league before shifting to international teams. Later on, Bryant became a coach, with one of his most notable coaching stints being at his alma mater, La Salle University.

Kobe Bryant was partially inspired to pick up the game of b-ball due to watching his father play. Of course, eventually Kobe himself was drafted into the league and, by the end of his career, he was regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. (Some have even compared him to Michael Jordan.) As Distractify explains though, Kobe came into conflict with Joe around the time that he met and married Vanessa in 2001. Reports alleged that the elder Bryant took issue with his son marrying someone who wasn’t Black. While Kobe eventually reconciled with his dad and mom, Pamela, after the birth of his first child, he took legal action against them in 2013 after they reportedly sold memorabilia that bore his likeness.

It’s unclear as to just how close the Bryants were at the time of Kobe’s passing, and both Joe and Pamela mostly remained out of the limelight amid their son’s final years. When the former LA Laker died, many sent their condolences to the couple as well. Kobe’s former teammate, Shaquille O’Neal, also called the Bryants on the first anniversary of his death to see how they were doing.

While some might wish that there was no kind of strife within the famous family to begin with, Vanessa Bryant’s statement is an indication that there’s still a level of love and respect. We here at CinemaBlend extend our condolences to the family and friends of Joe Bryant during this time.

As a fan, I still find it somewhat hard to believe that it’s been over four years since Kobe Bryant died at 41 alongside his daughter, Gianna, and seven others due to a helicopter crash. The NBA legend may no longer be with us, but his legacy certainly lives on. In the years since his passing, many have memorialized him in wonderful ways. One of the biggest gestures came from his former team, the Los Angeles Lakers, who honored him with a statue that was unveiled earlier this year. However, it would now seem that the monument includes some awkward mistakes in its inscriptions that fans may want changed.

In August 2023, Crypto.com Arena confirmed that the man known as “The Black Mamba” would receive a statue of his own on the premises. The tribute was officially unveiled to the public, much to the delight of Laker fans and franchise alums. The pose chosen for the statue is taken from the night that the revered shooting guard scored 81 points in 2006. Because of that, etched into the side of the monolith are the stats from that game between LA and the Toronto Raptors. 

What’s recently come to light, though, is that there are several spelling errors that are too obvious to miss. One such issue brought up by TMZ is that the name of former Toronto Raptors point guard José Calderón’s name was inscribed as "Jose Calderson." Ex-Lakers player Von Wafer’s name was also misspelled, with him being referred to as “Vom Wafer.” On top of that, a Coach’s Decision portion of the given stats was marked down as “Coach’s Decicion.” The third in that trio of errors would’ve been embarrassing enough, but the fact that two players’ names weren’t put down incorrectly is particularly perplexing. 

As of this writing, the Los Angeles Lakers have yet to release a statement on the matter, which slowly but surely seems to be picking up buzz across social media. It’s hard to say whether or not the problems present on the side of the sculpture will be corrected at some point. 

The mistakes aside, the statue itself is still very impressive, and the fact that it commemorates the anniversary of that incredible 81-point game is truly the icing on the cake. Per The Los Angeles Times, Kobe Bryant mentioned, before his death, that he wanted a monument to pay homage to that particular game and immortalize the stance of him pointing to the sky during that matchup. The unveiling was also great, as fans captured a sweet moment involving Pau Gasol and Bryant’s daughter, Natalia. Take a look at it for yourself: 

So much love has been shown to Kobe Bryant – who some argue is more skilled than Michael Jordan – since he died. Shaq spoke out around the one-year anniversary of his death, revealing that he used the day to reach out to Bryant’s parents and check up on them. Jimmy Fallon and more also offered tributes on that first-year commemoration. Additionally, Bryant’s wife, Vanessa, pens an annual birthday tributes for him, and they can surely bring tears to one’s eyes. 

All of this speaks to the impact that the late athlete had not only on the game of basketball but on the world at large. It’s wonderful to see that his work is being celebrated in a multitude of ways, including through that statue. Of course, I also hope that someone might rectify the engraved mistakes soon. 

You can learn more about Kobe Bryant’s career by checking out Legacy: The True Story of the LA Lakers with a Hulu subscription now.

It's been four years since the tragic passing of NBA legend Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna. Following their deaths, the league has made many tributes to the superstar, the latest being the unveiling of the first of three statues that will stand in front of Crypto.com Arena indefinitely of the shooting guard. In the game following the unveiling, fans spotted a moment between Bryant's daughter Natalia and former Lakers player Pau Gasol that has me in my feels. 

Natalia Bryant sat in the crowd watching the Lakers play the Denver Nuggets, and she was seated next to former Lakers star and friend of Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol. CBS Sports Host Ashley Nicole Moss showed the image of them during the game, and I think I need some tissues for the tears rolling down my face: 

Outside of their one scuffle playing against each other, which is chronicled in Netflix's The Redeem Team, Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant had a close friendship. Clearly, to this day he's tight with the whole Bryant family, as evidenced by Natalia resting her head on his shoulder as they watched the game.  

While Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal's tense relationship led to a dysfunctional Lakers team, Bryant became great friends with Pau Gasol after winning two championships. 

Since his passing, Gasol has remained a supportive presence for the family which is why he was seated with Natalia Bryant at the game. Obviously, we can learn so much about these two legendary players from the documentaries about Bryant, but the image just speaks volumes about the friendship they had. 

Even years after Kobe Bryant's death, many seem to be impacted it and what he meant to not just fans of the Los Angeles Lakers but the entire NBA. Jimmy Fallon and other celebrities had plenty to say on past anniversaries of his death, and as more time passes, I'm sure there will be even more stories about Bryant and other notable names. 

As mentioned, the statue is the first of three to go up around Crypto.com Arena. In addition to the one of Kobe Bryant sporting the No. 8 and holding up his finger, there will also be one of him wearing his jersey with the number 24, as well as another statue with him and his late daughter Gianna. All will effectively chronicle the stages of the athlete's career, from his youth to his later career, as well as his role as a father outside of the game. 

For those wishing to learn more about Kobe Bryant, you should definitely check out The Redeem Team, which is available to stream with a Netflix subscription. It's a great jumping-off point to learning about the type of player Bryant was and can be a great gateway to other documentaries discussing the athlete and his legacy in depth. 

Taylor Swift’s hit song “22” from Red (Taylor’s Version) is maybe the most joyful track on the album. It’s literally the last song that will make you cry. However, when I went to see The Eras Tour concert film, of all the moments in the show, it was during this upbeat song that I started to well up. The reason for it has to do with the story behind the “22” hat and the special person she gave it to at one of the concerts they filmed for this project in Los Angeles.

Who Taylor Swift Gave Her '22' Hat To In The Eras Tour Concert Film

Along with Taylor Swift changing up her surprise songs for every concert, she also gives her “22” black hat to a different fan every night. Going into the film, one of the questions I had about the Eras Tour we’d see on the big screen was regarding who they’d show getting the hat. The 6-year-old daughter of the late NBA legend Kobe Bryant and Vanessa Bryant, Bianka Bryant, ended up getting the “22” hat during the concert film, and it was one of the most joyous moments of the whole event. 

Vanessa Bryant took her daughters – Natalia, 20, Bianka, 6, and Capri, 3 – to see Swift during her first of six shows at SoFi Stadium in August. Every night, Swift gives the hat she wears during “22” to an excited fan. Most of the time it’s a kid, and sometimes, as you can see in the TikTok from ESPN, she shares the sweet moment with a youngster she personally knows, like Bianka Bryant. 

The entire Bryant family was thrilled about the moment, and considering Taylor Swift’s connection to the Lakers legend and his loved ones, it made the moment in the concert film even more special (and emotional).

Taylor Swift’s Connection To Kobe Bryant 

In 2015, during the 1989 World Tour, Taylor Swift brought A-list celebrities out on stage during the majority of her shows. When she got to Los Angeles, the GOAT of pop music brought out the GOAT of basketball by having Kobe Bryant join her on stage. 

Swift had played five sold-out shows at the then Staples Center, and over the course of her career, she had sold out the iconic arena 16 times. That was “the most of any artist ever” and the number of championships the Lakers had at the time, as the NBA star put it. So, to celebrate, he announced that the pop star would be getting a banner in the event space.

In 2019, Kobe Bryant praised Swift and how she’s shown love for his family during an interview on The Jordan Harbinger Show. He talked about how he admired her career, and he loved learning about how she sustained success and exceeded expectations. The pop star was also so nice to his kids, and he really appreciated that. Overall, game recognizes game, and the basketball player called her “a killer.” 

Since the tragic passing of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gigi, Swift has seemingly remained close to the family. She paid tribute to them after their untimely deaths in 2020, and since then she has gifted the Bryant kids merchandise when she dropped albums, per Today. 

At the LA concert this summer, Natalia Bryant posted about meeting with Swift backstage after the show, and you can tell by the massive smiles that there's a lot of love between the singer and this family.

Vanessa Bryant showed off this history with the jacket she wore to the concert this summer too, as Insider reported. She rocked a coat that had a big photo from that 1989 concert in 2015 which featured both Swift and Kobe on stage together. To make matters even more emotional, she had “say you’ll remember me,” written on the front in a heart. They also made the concert a full family affair, as Vanessa made friendship bracelets for Kobe and Gigi.

Why The ‘22’ Moment Made Me Tear Up While Watching Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour

I’m not a crier. While the live Eras Tour altered my brain chemistry and made me feel all the emotions, I didn’t tear up. So, you can imagine my shock when, out of every song Swift sang during her concert, it was “22” that got me. However, upon further reflection, it actually makes a lot of sense why I got so emotional. 

First of all, as a casual basketball fan from the West Coast, Kobe Bryant’s impact and legacy are not lost on me. His and his daughter’s deaths were truly tragic, and seeing little Bianka Bryant on the big screen brought back a lot of those emotions of the day we lost them. 

Secondly, and on a happier note, the “22” moment in the show is bubbling with joy, and seeing Swift pass along her hat is always so touching. To me, seeing a little kid or a massive fan standing by the side of the stage shows the connection between Swift and her fans. It also clearly shows how much she loves Swifties. In the movie, you can clearly see the excitement and adoration on both the singer's and Bianka's faces, and their joy is infectious. 

Combining these two things, I knew the gravity of Bianka Bryant being there in LA with Swift, and anytime she gives away the “22” hat a big smile always ends up on my face. Watching the concert film, all those emotions hit me at once. Seeing the 6-year-old with the biggest smile on her face as the singer lovingly hugged her, I got surprisingly emotional. I was thinking about Kobe’s legacy, Swift’s accomplishments, and just how special it is to be a Swiftie. In hindsight, of course, it was this moment that made me emotional. 

If you want to see this sweet moment on the big screen, Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour just dropped on the 2023 movie schedule, and you can witness it right now in movie theaters. After you see the incredible concert film, make sure you get ready for Swift’s upcoming projects, which include the continuation of the Eras Tour and the re-release of 1989 (Taylor’s Version), which comes out on October 27. 

It’s hard to believe that it’s already been over three years since the death of Kobe Bryant. The beloved NBA veteran was tragically killed in a helicopter crash alongside his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, and seven other passengers. While the lauded athlete may be gone, he’s certainly far from forgotten. Fans continue to speak of his dominance on the court as well as his exploits off it. No one, though, has arguably honored him more than his wife, Vanessa Bryant. She’s shared more than a few sweet tributes to her hubby over the past several years and just dropped a birthday message on what would’ve been his 45th. And said post received responses from Khloé Kardashian, Jeanie Buss and more. 

Vanessa Bryant took to her Instagram to share some heartwarming sentiments about the late Kobe Bryant. She shared a number of photos taken throughout the years, with each one arguably being sweeter than the last. As nice as the pics are though, it’s her brief caption that really serves as the icing on the metaphorical birthday cake: 

To be honest, crying is only natural whenever one sees one of Mrs. Bryant’s tender salutes to her hubby. Many of the fans who replied in the comments seemed to be in their feelings as well. Among them were also a host of celebrities who provided some incredibly thoughtful responses. One of the folks who commented was her longtime friend, Khloé Kardashian, who was once married to former Lakers player Lamar Odom. The reality TV veteran’s message is filled with emojis, which say just as much as any words ever could: 

The Kardashians star’s mother, Kris Jenner, also responded with a plethora of heart emojis. Los Angeles Lakers majority owner Jeanie Buss responded as well, sharing a lovely message that sums up the Bryants’ relationship: 

The aforementioned celebrities were just the tip of the iceberg as a host of others, including Zoe Saldaña, Mario Lopez and La La Anthony. You can their reactions and more in the listing down below:

• Your love is blessed. - Zoe Saldaña
• ❤️❤️❤️ - Mario Lopez
• Love you so much ❤️❤️❤️❤️ - La La Anthony
• ❤️ - Caron Butler
• ❤️ - Swin Cash
• ♾️ - Los Angeles Lakers

Celebrities have shown a considerable amount of kindness to Vanessa Bryant, her kids and the extended family. Last summer, Golden State Warriors player Klay Thompson honored Kobe and Gigi while making a speech at the ESPYs. (Vanessa responded, calling the athlete a “class act.”) And just earlier this month, Taylor Swift gave her “22” hat to Natalia Bryant – Kobe and Vanessa’s oldest child – during the Los Angeles leg of her Eras Tour. One of the most sentimental acts of kindness this fan has heard, though, is Shaq’s check-in with Kobe’s parents on the first anniversary of his death. 

It’s very clear that the Bryant family still has plenty of people in its corner. Like myself, people will surely never forget the “Black Mamba” and his contributions not just to the game of basketball but to society as a whole. Here’s wishing the hall of famer a happy heavenly birthday.

There’s a fair amount of etiquette Taylor Swift fans should familiarize themselves with before attending a show on the Eras Tour. First, bring thousands of friendship bracelets to exchange with all of your new besties, and then make sure you know when to scream, “Taylor, you’ll be fine,” and all of the other fun things that turn the show into a mind-altering experience. Another special moment that happens each night is when the artist chooses a young fan to receive her “22” hat, and it was Kobe Bryant’s daughter Bianka who received the honor during one of her stops in Los Angeles. You can see the sweet moment below.

The iconic musician is in the midst of several Eras Tour dates at Sofi Stadium near Los Angeles, and the celebrities have been turning out for Taylor Swift. Vanessa Bryant, whose husband Kobe Bryant and 13-year-old daughter Gigi died in a helicopter crash in 2020, was in attendance with her daughters 20-year-old Natalia, 6-year-old Bianka and 4-year-old Capri. One fan captured the special moment during “22,” when Swift made Bianka’s night: 

This was definitely a special moment for the 6-year-old and the rest of the Bryants, but I can imagine it was a pretty emotional experience for the rest of the crowd as well (at least those who realized who the lucky little lady was), since Kobe Bryant contributed so much to the city of Los Angeles during his 20-year career as a Laker.

Bianka was all smiles during that sweet gesture, and in several photos and videos that her mom posted on Instagram. Vanessa Bryant also included a throwback video that showed just how much of a full-circle moment this was for Taylor Swift and the Bryant family. Back in 2015, Kobe Bryant surprised the Midnights artist with her own championship banner in the Staples Center, after she sold out a record-setting 16 concerts in the venue. 

It’s pretty clear why Bianka was chosen to receive the special black hat on that particular night, but the process that goes into who Taylor Swift chooses is largely unknown. The hat often goes to a young fan, like in the case of Grace DelVecchio, a 12-year-old from Yorktown, New York, who was picked by Swift’s team after her speech pathologist tried to reach out to the singer and the New York Post took notice, publishing a story about them.

In another case the hat went to 22-year-old TikToker Mikael Arellano, who created the viral “Bejeweled” dance that Taylor Swift added to her Eras Tour choreography.

However this moment came to fruition, it’s likely one that Bianka Bryant won’t ever forget. A number of other celebrities have also made appearances at the Eras Tour’s L.A. dates, with Buffy the Vampire Slayer co-stars Sarah Michelle Gellar and Seth Green reuniting for the show, and Mindy Kaling living her best Swiftie life.

Whether or not you were able to nab the hottest concert ticket of the year, those hoping to get a taste of the performer’s live shows can relive the magic of the Taylor Swift Reputation Stadium Tour with a Netflix subscription, and see all of the upcoming Taylor Swift music and other projects to look forward to. 

Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty is a detailed (and over-the-top) account of how the historic NBA franchise established itself as a consistent championship-winning club. The series specifically sheds light on the “Showtime” era of the 1980s, which saw Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and more shine while on the court. While the show has exclusively tackled the ‘80s Laker teams up to this point, one can’t help but think about the possibility of the dramedy reaching Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal’s generation. It’s too early to say if the series will get the chance to cover that material, but that fact isn’t stopping the producers from sharing thoughts on the possibility. 

Kevin Messick and Salli Richardson-Whitfield are once again on board as executive producers for the second season of Winning Time. Luckily for me, I was able to speak to them on behalf of CinemaBlend before the new episodes drop. When we chatted, I couldn't help but ask about the future of their show and how long they believe it can run. Messick provided a reasonable response, revealing that he and his collaborators don't have a specific number of seasons in mind. Nevertheless, it definitely doesn’t sound like he’s opposed to covering the Kobe/Shaq drama at some point: 

There are indeed plenty of stories that can be told about the NBA team through the lens of the HBO series. It’s also true that author Jeff Perlman, whose work has been adapted for the program, covered a lot of subject matter. Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant’s time as teammates – which occurred from the mid-’90s to early 2000s – would be particularly entertaining. While they played well together and won three championship titles, the dynamic duo had their share of issues. Basketball greats like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar have explained how their feud caused the team to become “dysfunctional” at the time. Even Shaq himself confirmed that he’d push Bryant’s buttons on occasion. However, that was mainly to motivate his younger teammate so that he was at his best when game day arrived. 

Salli Richardson-Whitfield, who also serves as director for the series, is also excited by the prospect of covering other notable Lakers as Winning Time pushes on. However, based on the sentiments she shared during our virtual junket interview, she has a soft spot for the Kobe/Shaq era. She gushed about potentially getting to tell theirs and other LA stars’ stories: 

One can only hope that the cast and crew do indeed get to reach that span of time on the show. When Shaquille O’Neal shared thoughts on Winning Time, even he admitted that it’d be “interesting” if the show covered his and the Black Mamba’s exploits. Such a season is still a long way off, though, as the producers mentioned. Still, if the fans keep tuning in, it could very well become a reality. 

Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty returns to HBO for its second season on Sunday, August 6 at 9 p.m. ET as part of the 2023 TV schedule. Episodes will subsequently be available for Max subscription holders to stream.

Basketball fans frequently enjoy discussing the GOATS of the NBA, specifically their skills, accomplishments and impact beyond the court. Two of the players who come up quite frequently in those conversations are Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. It goes without saying that both are iconic in their own right, though some still wonder who was the better player. The answer to that question is honestly still up for debate but, amid that continued discussion, Dennis Rodman, provided some keen thoughts. The rebounding icon specifically got candid about what he views as the key difference between Bryant and MJ. 

Dennis Rodman may be one of the most eccentric athletes to ever step foot on a basketball court, but he’s also one of the most cerebral. His deep understanding can probably be partially attributed to the fact that he played with great players and worked under excellent coaches. “The Worm” played alongside Michael Jordan (as a Chicago Bull) and Kobe Bryant (as a Los Angeles Laker) and was able to see both in their primes. Rodman was asked about the pair during a new interview and, while he knows people think they’re the same on the surface, he believes Jordan stands apart for one reason: 

Few can honestly match Michael Jordan’s competitive nature, and he always seemed laser-focused on the goal that was in front of him. Fans got a taste of his mentality through ESPN’s The Last Dance (which is streamable with a Netflix subscription). During the closing moments of Episode 7, he even referenced his competitiveness and desire to win directly. Dennis Rodman is right in that Jordan’s drive inspired a lot of players, and Kobe Bryant (who sadly died at the age of 41 in 2020) was one of them. Bryant essentially bottled up that energy and used it to help establish the “Mamba Mentality” he developed. Rodman added further comments on their differences during his chat with VladTV:

Michael Jordan did indeed give Kobe Bryant his flowers during the public memorial service, and it was a sweet sight to see. It’s honestly great to see players prop each other up, and Dennis Rodman has done that very thing on a number of occasions. Even during this latest interview, he heaped praise on fellow teammate Scottie Pippen (who recently called Jordan a “horrible” player). 

Of course, the Double Team alum himself deserves a lot of credit as well. He’s one of the greatest rebounders to ever play the game, and his stiff defense was crucial for his teams. Both the Bulls and the Detroit Pistons owe him a lot of credit for his contributions to their championship teams. It doesn’t surprise me in the slightest as to why the flamboyant personality was named to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary team. 

Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant are both on that list as well – and rightfully so. It’s likely that fans will continue to debate who’s the best between the two. But I think most would probably agree that Bryant (who won five championships) and Jordan (who earned six titles) are both in a league of their own.

Minor spoilers for Creed III lie ahead, so read at your own risk.

Michael B. Jordan notched another major box office hit in Creed III, which hit theaters back in March. The latest installment in the franchise masterfully continues the story of Jordan’s Adonis Creed while also further allowing the series to further remove itself from the shadow of Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky Balboa. It goes without saying that the movie is heavily influenced by the world of professional boxing. However, a certain basketball icon also had an impact on the threequel – Kobe Bryant. Jordan recently explained how that came to be, and the answer is very sweet. 

The new movie shows off different aspects of Donnie, who’s grown a lot since he was introduced as the young and hungry fighter in Ryan Coogler’s 2015 film. What’s probably most delightful about him this time around is that he’s fully settled into his role as a father. He and Tessa Thompson’s Bianca are the proud parents of Amara (Mila Davis-Kent), who was born in the second installment. The clever little girl is now older, thanks to a time jump, and is incredibly close with her papa. It’s sweet to see Adonis embrace his latest title – “girl dad” – and we can chalk much of that up to Michael B. Jordan observations of Kobe Bryant and Jamie Foxx, which he discussed with IndieWire:

There are plenty of things that we know about Kobe Bryant, who tragically died at the age of 41 in 2020. He was a fierce competitor, a five-time NBA, a generous philanthropist and is widely considered to be one of the greatest athletes of all time. Above all that though, he was also a devoted husband and father to four daughters. The Los Angeles Lakers legend always seemed incredibly proud of his kids and shared a particularly close bond with his daughter, Gianna, a rising basketball player. This is one of the reasons why it was so devastating to learn that she also died alongside him and seven others in a helicopter crash. 

Though their absences are still felt by so many, it’s been wonderful to see how the public has continued to honor them as well as the others who lost their lives that day. Michael B. Jordan’s critically acclaimed directorial debut is another excellent example of that. It was very wise of the actor/director to take cues from the Black Mamba’s relationship with his children. Because he did so, Creed III has a very sentimental subplot that sees Donnie training his daughter, who wants to become a boxer. Those scenes are great and, with Amara on that path, some fans think the producers should wait at least a decade for another sequel. That way, the young lady can lead it herself. 

I’d like to believe that Kobe Bryant would’ve been able to appreciate the passion and intensity packed into Michael B. Jordan’s latest movie. But it may have been the loving father/daughter relationship that might’ve touched him the most. It’s nothing short of inspiring to see men like Bryant, Jamie Foxx, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and others step up and be the men their daughters need. I think we can all agree that the world is better for having devoted girl dads.

Anyone who’s yet to see Creed III, one of the biggest titles on the schedule of 2023 new movie releases, can still catch it in a theater or rent it digitally now. And if you’re more of a basketball fan, I recommend Netflix’s The Redeem Team, which does Kobe Bryant justice in a myriad of ways.

The Kardashians and Jenners face a lot of public scrutiny by choosing to live their lives in front of the camera, but it’s been proven over and over again that the attention doesn’t stop with just the members of the family. The romantic partners of the reality TV stars are often also thrust into the spotlight. So when Lamar Odom got married to Khloé Kardashian in 2009 just one month after meeting her, and became a fixture on Keeping Up With the Kardashians, you’d better believe his Los Angeles Lakers teammate Kobe Bryant got to have some say in the situation.

Lamar Odom opened up about his ex-wife and his connection to the stars of Hulu’s The Kardashians for the TMZ special Lamar Odom: Sex, Drugs & Kardashians. It’s easy to see how the increased attention surrounding the NBA forward could have been seen as a distraction by his Laker teammates — especially the no-nonsense Kobe Bryant — and Odom revealed what they thought about his new and sudden reality TV stardom, saying: 

Of course Lamar Odom had to run such a thing by team leader Kobe Bryant, knowing that being on Keeping Up With the Kardashians — and later his own spinoff Khloé & Lamar — would likely bring a new kind of attention to the team and definitely become a huge part of his life. The NBA great, who tragically died in a helicopter crash in 2020, apparently said as long as Odom continued to do his job successfully on the court, all was good by him. Odom seemed to have proved just that by winning the NBA’s Sixth Man Award in 2011.

By marrying Khloé Kardashian in a wedding that was filmed for the E! reality show, the Celebrity Big Brother alum was rocketed to a level of fame that not even his career on an NBA championship team could provide. In his words: 

The marriage lasted for four years before Khloé Kardashian filed for divorce in 2013 amid Lamar Odom’s struggles with drugs and sex addiction. The proceedings were put on hold after the NBA vet overdosed at a Las Vegas brothel, spending three days in a coma and suffering multiple strokes and heart attacks. After Kardashian helped him recover, the divorce was finalized in 2016. 

Despite how the relationship ended, Lamar Odom still has strong feelings for Khloé Kardashian, and she admitted to Kelly Clarkson in October that she “genuniely still love[s]” him as well and wants the best for him. 

Fans who want to relive what the former couple was like together can stream Khloé & Lamar with an Amazon Prime Video subscription, or watch Keeping Up With the Kardashians with a Peacock Premium subscription. For those who want to remember one of the NBA’s greatest players of all time, check out these documentaries and specials about Kobe Bryant. 

In the aftermath of Kobe Bryant’s tragic death in 2020, his loved ones faced a lengthy legal case involving the photos from his helicopter crash site. That situation, which involved his widow Vanessa Bryant, was finally resolved earlier this year but, unfortunately, another member of the family is facing a situation. The couple’s teenage daughter, Natalia, has reportedly been receiving advances from a man who she says has been stalking her. Now, the young woman is taking steps to receive legal protection in the matter. 

Natalia Bryant, the oldest of Kobe and Vanessa Bryant’s four children, is allegedly being eyed by a man who’s had previous run-ins with the law. The Los Angeles Police Department is apparently aware of the situation and, per documents, obtained by TMZ, Bryant is looking to get a restraining order. The 19-year-old University of Southern California student reportedly made the legal request on Monday and is asking that the man be required to stay at least 200 yards away from her at her home, school and at other locations. The news entity notes that the LAPD wants an order to be enforced, though a judge has yet to rule on the matter. 

The man who’s been accused of stalking is 32-year-old Dwayne Kemp, who allegedly first tried to reach out to Kobe Bryant’s daughter two years ago when she was 17. The man has been described as a gun enthusiast and is allegedly in the process of purchasing one at this time. There are also claims that he’s threatened to buy two weapons, including an AK-47. The legal documents from the case also include information about Kemp’s legal history, which includes multiple arrests and convictions that involve firearms.

The documents shared with TMZ also paint an unnerving picture by detailing the purported stalker’s activities. Natalia Bryant claims that Dwayne Kemp believes they’ve been engaged in a romance of sorts despite having never formally met or had regular contact with each other. Kemp also apparently showed up at Bryant’s sorority house and appeared at one of her classes. In addition, Bryant alleged that Kemp sent her a DM that featured an image of her late father. He also included a message suggesting that the two of them could produce a “Kobe-like child.”

Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, were killed alongside seven others in the Calabasas helicopter crash over two years ago. As mentioned, Vanessa Bryant subsequently became embroiled in a case, after she filed suit against Los Angeles County for the reported dissemination of the crash site photos. “Emotional distress” and taunting social media messages were also at the heart of the case. At the end of August, Vanessa was unanimously awarded $16 million (though a court error initially reduced the sum).

Given the circumstances in Natalia Bryant’s situation aren’t quite as involved, chances are a resolution of sorts will be reached sooner than in the photo case. The LAPD’s direct involvement in the matter may also help to get things moving. Neither the Bryant family nor the authorities have provided official statements at this time.

Netflix’s newest sports documentary, The Redeem Team, sheds light on one of the most interesting basketball teams ever assembled – the 2008 U.S. Men’s Olympic Basketball team. The group was meant to… well, redeem the country’s international basketball program after the 2004 team only managed to win the bronze in Athens. This new doc, which was crafted by the producers behind Michael Jordan’s The Last Dance, does an effective job of tackling the various personalities that made up the squad. However, I really have to give props to the filmmakers for doing Kobe Bryant justice. 

It goes without saying that many basketball fans have plenty of memories tied to Kobe Bryant. With that, so many of us were shocked and saddened when Bryant died at the age of 41 in 2020 (alongside his daughter, Gianna, and seven others). With this, subsequently released sports docs involving the late Los Angeles Laker have sought to handle his legacy with care. (Even The Last Dance featured a Bryant-centric segment). The Redeem Team, in particular, deserves quite a bit of credit for the way in which it upholds Bryant’s memory, and it manages to accomplish that challenging feat in a few key ways:

The Redeem Team Effectively Displays Kobe Bryant’s Prowess As A Basketball Player

It’s safe to say that everyone knows just how effective the five-time NBA champion was on the basketball court. Today, plenty of people sing his praises, including former teammate Shaquille O’Neal (who admitted he used to push his buttons in order to motivate him). Using footage and sharp quotes from his teammates, this newly released doc does an excellent job of showcasing the late star’s talents. There are a few moments in particular that really stand out. 

The segment of the doc that’s devoted to Team USA’s game with Argentina (who beat them in the semifinals in Athens). Coach Mike Krzyzewski lit a fire under Kobe Bryant by leaving a newspaper clipping in his seat. Said article asserted that Argentine player Manu Ginobli was the best shooting guard in the world. Needless to say, Bryant took the bait and ultimately dominated on the floor. Bryant’s skills were legendary, and the film certainly doesn’t shy away from making that point clear. 

Kobe Bryant’s Ability To Set The Tone As A Teammate Is On Full Display

During the course of his career, Kobe Bryant earned a bit of a reputation for being a one-man show. It’s true that he did like to have the ball in hands as seen in Legacy: The True Story of the LA Lakers (which can be streamed with a Hulu subscription). Many have also made note of how that led to dysfunction with Shaq. However, he was a good teammate in many respects, especially when it came to the Olympic team. That idea is proven on multiple occasions during The Redeem Team. 

At one point, audiences learn that the Laker legend would get up at 5 a.m. to put in work at the gym. His teammates, humorously enough, didn’t become aware of that ritual until they crossed paths with him after a night of partying. While Lebron James, Dwyane Wade and co. were first taken aback by it, they eventually followed suit, and I’d say those early-morning team workouts definitely helped the team in the long run. And another example of tone-setting came when the star rammed LA teammate Pau Gasol, who was playing for Spain, during a preliminary match. KB8 sought to instill a sense of toughness in his cohorts, who couldn’t believe what he’d done, and the bold move certainly stuck with them throughout the rest of the summer games.

The Redeem Team Picked Impeccable Archive Interviews Of Kobe Bryant

Crafting a documentary of any kind can be challenging, but that’s especially true when a key interview subject is no longer with us. The producers of The Redeem Team were faced with that very hurdle when it came to Kobe Bryant. Yet they succeeded in digging up some smart interviews that manage to provide insight into Bryant’s experience at the 2008 games in Beijing. The special draws from a few sources, but the most prominent one is the film Kobe Bryant’s Muse, which can be streamed with a Paramount+ subscription.

You may be wondering why such things are important but, when dealing with a deceased interview subject, a documentarian wants to be sure that they’re not merely crafting a narrative around said person. In the end, they want the person to be able to speak for themself. Though it’s hard to match the effectiveness of actually having him around, the filmmakers succeed in giving the hall of famer a firm presence in the film – one that’s both entertaining and tasteful. 

The Sports Documentary Shows Some Wonderful Lighthearted Moments Involving Kobe Bryant

In many cases, the public only saw Kobe Bryant as a skilled basketball assassin on the court. But if you’ve seen interviews with him, you’ll know that he also had a tender side. The Redeem Team doesn’t shy away from showing that as well. It’s refreshing to see him laugh with teammates during practices and cheer on other U.S. Olympic athletes at their respective events. One of the most heartwarming moments from the film saw the team celebrating Bryant’s 30th birthday, with LeBron James even leading the room in a round of “Happy Birthday.” Honestly, I don’t know what was sweeter: the song itself or the smile across Bryant’s face after it was done.

On top of that, the movie also features some nice archive footage of the athlete with his wife, Vanessa Bryant, who’s preserved his memory (and their daughter’s) over the past few years. The purpose of any good documentary is to humanize its subjects, and this one does a wonderful job with Kobe Bryant. Not only does it give one a great sense of Kobe the player, it also effectively sheds light on Kobe the man.

I’ll admit that it’s still somewhat difficult to watch footage of the NBA great at this point. But if docs put as much effort into honoring him as this one did, then I look forward to seeing more productions about his illustrious career and life.

The Redeem Team, one of this year’s most significant new movie releases, can be streamed with a Netflix subscription.

The Los Angeles Lakers have one of the most storied histories in the entirety of sports, though it’s not without its share of rough patches. One of the NBA franchise’s most tumultuous times came during the mid-2000s, which marked a feud between Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal. The tension between the duo (who won three championships together) has been chronicled in detail on Legacy: The True Story of the LA Lakers (streamable with a Hulu subscription). Now, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – one of the show’s interview subjects – has shared some further insight into how the Bryant-O’Neal beef caused the team to become “dysfunctional” at that time. 

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar may have stopped playing with the Lakers in 1989, but the legendary center did still hang around during the early 2000s. At that time, Abdul-Jabbar would occasionally sit in on practices, as shown in archive footage presented in Legacy. On the heels of the show’s seventh and eighth episodes, Abdul-Jabbar treated fans to some behind-the-scenes details via his newsletter. When it came to Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal’s feud, the hall of famer asserted that the dysfunction was partially the result of Shaq wanting his teammate to pass more:

Many likely remember just how much attention the Lakers received during that time. Though the two players had had disagreements throughout their time as teammates, things seemed to reach a head by the 2003-2004 NBA season. At the time, both all-stars had also entered a back-and-fourth of sorts as a result of comments they’d made to the media.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar can definitely relate to Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal’s experience more than most. Years ago, Abdul-Jabbar contended with the presence of a highly motivated younger player in Earvin “Magic” Johnson, when he was drafted by LA in 1979. However, the two seemed to have a mostly harmonious relationship over the course of the 10 years they played together. (They also won a total of five championships as a result.) When discussing Bryant and O’Neal, Abdul-Jabbar went on to say that the Black Mamba took issue with Shaq’s work ethic at the time:

While things were seemingly contentious between the two for a while, they ultimately patched things up during a lengthy interview in 2018. That reconciliation became even more meaningful following Kobe Bryant’s death at age 41 in 2020. Shaquille O’Neal was among the many to pay tribute to the star after his passing and honored Bryant again on the one-year anniversary of his passing. More recently, Shaq explained how he used to press Bryant’s buttons in order to motivate him. The Diesel also showed support for Bryant’s widow, Vanessa, amid her recent lawsuit over her husband and daughter’s deaths.

The dysfunction that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar speaks of may have been tough for the Lakers organization at the time but, ultimately, things worked out for both stars and the organization as a whole. Shaq was traded to the Miami Heat in 2004 and went on to win a fourth championship, while Kobe Bryant led the Lakers to two additional NBA titles. But at the end of the day, what’s particularly comforting to know is that the two were eventually able to get past the drama.

Those who want more insight into the history of one of the NBA’s most esteemed teams can check out new episodes of Legacy: The True Story of the LA Lakers, which drop on Mondays as part of the 2022 TV schedule.

The NBA has featured some incredible on-court duos over the years, such as Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and (the feuding) Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. Of course, another pair of players who must be included among their ranks are Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal. The two Los Angeles Lakers alums had a “complex” relationship, but few would argue against their effectiveness and impact on the game. In recent years, Shaq has been open about their time as players and recently discussed how he’d push Bryant’s buttons, as well as why he’d do it. 

Shaq was one of the most imposing basketball players to ever put on an NBA uniform and always appeared to have a serious demeanor during a game. However, he didn’t mind being a troll and taking the piss out of his teammates and rivals when given the chance. That apparently extended to Kobe Bryant, as the Diesel explained that he would taunt him during practices. And after hearing the hall of famer’s comments, I’d love to see footage of the exact encounters he describes here:

The thought of Shaquille O’Neal busting a young Kobe Bryant’s chops is honestly pretty funny. But as the Inside the NBA host also explained on the Patrick Bet-David Podcast, there was a method to his intimidation tactics. O’Neal chastised Bryant because he saw something unique within his teammate early on and wanted to cultivate it. With that, the retired center opened up about what made the Black Mamba so different from other players:

It’d be an understatement to say that Mr. 81 was a different kind of basketball player, as he possessed skills and a mindset that few athletes have. The “Mamba Mentality” is something that so many have attempted to emulate and, based on his on-court theatrics, it’s not hard to see why. If you’re like me, you can still picture the small forward gliding across the court, and such an image no doubt resonates with fans now more than ever. 

Following Kobe Bryant’s death at 41 in 2020, many paid tribute to the late star, celebrating not only his contributions to the game of basketball but to society as a whole. Shaquille O’Neal marked the one-year anniversary of Bryant’s death by calling his parents. And in August, Shaq showed support for his widow, Vanessa Bryant, amid her court case involving photos from Kobe’s helicopter crash site. Though the two bumped heads at times, the two did manage to settle their differences before Bryant’s passing. That’s definitely a comforting piece of information for fans as are stories like the one O’Neal told.

Those who want to hear more anecdotes like these can check out Legacy: The True Story of the LA Lakers, which is steamable with a Hulu subscription. The show drops new episodes on Mondays as part of the 2022 TV schedule.

In the eight months following the tragic death of Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna in a helicopter crash, widowed wife and mother Vanessa Bryant decided to pursue a lawsuit against the county of Los Angeles for negligence and invasion of privacy. This came after a group of deputies reportedly took graphic photos from the crash site and disseminated them out. Bryant won the case last week, but in a new development, her earnings for the civil trial have been reduced by seven figures. 

After the jury found LA County liable, Vanessa Bryant was initially awarded $16 million in the verdict and her fellow plaintiff, Chris Chester, who also lost his partner and daughter, was given $15 million. However, Bryant’s amount has been reduced by $1 million to a total of $15 million due to a court error. The decision was noted by U.S. District Judge John F. Walter, who said the jury’s intention was to give Bryant and Chester an equal amount in the verdict. 

The widowed wife of Kobe Bryant agreed to the change in the verdict over the weekend and the jury was not called back to court regarding the matter, per USA Today. With the change put in place, Vanessa Bryant will be awarded $1.5 million by the sheriff’s department for past emotional distress (rather than $2.5 million), $6 million from the L.A. County Fire Department for emotional suffering and $7.5 million for future suffering from the department as a result of the images being taken and shared of her deceased family’s remains from the 2020 crash. Bryant plans to donate the money to the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation, which will benefit the funding of sports programming to underserved athletes. 

In September 2020, Bryant filed the lawsuit against Los Angeles County following the photos being shared. The lawsuit also alleged at the time Sheriff Alex Villanueva had not taken action against his deputies until a complaint was filed. Vanessa Bryant didn’t take the stand until earlier this month, August 10, when she shared that she still experiences panic attacks due to the existence and sharing of the photos. 

Her lawyer, Luis Li, claimed the photos of the remains of Kobe and Gianna Bryant were passed around to at least 28 sheriff’s department devices and to at least 12 firefighters. Among the evidence shown in court to the jury was a video of an off-duty deputy showing the photos to a bartender while drinking at a bar. Employees of LA County also allegedly shared the photos in a bar while “pantomiming dismemberment and showing off the photos over cocktails at an awards gala,” per The Washington Post. 

During the trial, Bryant even called upon an expert from Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s recent high-profile case. While one former captain took the stand a couple of weeks ago, he spoke of being shown the photos and saying they were “going to haunt me forever” when he took the stand. Bryant has received a lot of support for her case, including kind words from Shaquille O’Neal, who said it was a “great thing holding people responsible” for actions that negatively impacted her and her family. 

This week, Vanessa Bryant also paid tribute to Kobe Bryant on his birthday, who would have turned 44 on August 23. Following the verdict, she can hopefully rest easy knowing she’s found justice for her negligence and invasion of privacy case against the LA County. 

It’s hard to believe that it’s been over two years since the world lost Kobe Bryant, who died at age 41 alongside his daughter and seven others in a helicopter crash. The NBA legend’s legacy has endured though, as many have continued to show reverence towards him since the tragic incident. The late star’s widow, Vanessa Bryant, has consistently honored both her husband and their daughter, Gianna. At present, Vanessa is in the middle of a trial centered around circulated crash site photos. Amid the legal drama though, Mrs. Bryant took some time to commemorate her hubby on what would’ve been his 44th birthday.

Kobe Bryant’s widow shared the birthday post to her Instagram account, and the photo she included shows Vanessa embracing Kobe after his winning performance in the 2009 NBA Finals. She also included a short, but sweet caption:

I mean, I’m not tearing up or anything. I simply have some dust in my eye. But in all seriousness, this is a lovely post that both honors the Los Angeles Lakers icon while also signifying the love he and his wife had for each other. Vanessa Bryant shared a tender message on her husband’s birthday last year as well. Like this latest one, the  post included a throwback image and a sentimental caption. 

Kobe Bryant’s sudden passing was followed by a wide range of tributes from fans and celebrities. In the immediate aftermath, the ESPN docuseries The Last Dance even honored Bryant during one of its 10 episodes. On the one-year anniversary of his death, Jimmy Fallon and more shared touching tributes for the hall of famer. And as you’d expect, Bryant-related memorabilia has also become even more popular as of late.

Following the Black Mamba’s death, former teammate Shaquille O’Neal paid emotional tribute to him on Inside the NBA and also spoke at his public memorial service. O’Neal would later mark the one-year anniversary of his death by checking in on the Bryant family. Recently O’Neal also weighed in on Vanessa Bryant’s court case and lauded her for “holding people responsible.”

In the case, Vanessa Bryant is reportedly seeking an unspecified amount of money (said to be millions of dollars) in restitution from Los Angeles County over crash site photos that were taken and shared by first responders. Bryant claims to have experienced “emotional distress” over the spread of the photos and the taunting social media messages she received early on. With that, she’s suing on the grounds of negligence and invasion of privacy. 

Much of the public is sure to keep its eyes on the emotionally heavy court case as it continues. All the while, massive fans will likely follow Vanessa Bryant’s lead and share their own tributes to Kobe.

For over a week now, Vanessa Bryant has been engaged in a trial over photos of her late husband, Kobe Bryant, their daughter, Gianna, who died in a helicopter crash in 2020. Vanessa is suing Los Angeles County for negligence and invasion of privacy due to the dissemination of crash site photos taken by first responders. As the emotionally-charged case has pushed on, her husband’s former NBA colleagues have seemingly remained silent on the situation, likely out of respect. But now, Shaquille O’Neal has shared some thoughts on the case involving his teammate’s widow. 

Shaquille O’Neal is usually a person who has no problem being honest, sometimes in brutal fashion, as evidenced by some of the remarks he’s shared just over the past few months. (Shaq’s comments on Kanye West and Pete Davidson’s beef are still ringing in my ear.) When asked about Vanessa Bryant’s ongoing legal battle, O’Neal had nothing but compassion, though. The hall of famer admitted to ET that while he’s not incredibly close to Bryant, he supports her efforts in the courtroom:

Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant were Los Angeles Lakers teammates for eight years, bringing the storied NBA franchise three championships during their run. While both had camaraderie both on and off the court, growing tensions began to rise between the two over their roles on the team and Shaq’s reported salary demands. With that, in 2004, O’Neal was traded to the Miami Heat, where he won a fourth championship title. However, in 2018, he made amends with Bryant, who’d managed to win two additional titles of his own before retiring. With this, it’s understandable that O’Neal would be in Vanessa Bryant’s corner at this time. 

Since Kobe Bryant’s death, Shaq has honored his late colleague and friend in a number of ways. After news of the basketball great’s passing broke, The Diesel emotionally paid tribute during an installment of TNT’s Inside the NBA. Shaq also marked the one-year anniversary of Bryant’s death by checking in on the deceased star’s parents. 

More recently, like many of us, the fifteen-time NBA all-star can only watch, as the legal proceedings between Vanessa Bryant and L.A. County continue to play out. Over the past week, the judge and jurors have heard testimonies from a number of people, particularly law enforcement officials who were on the scene at the helicopter crash that day. One person to take the stand was Sheriff’s Deputy Doug Johnson, who testified that he did nothing wrong by taking 25 photos, which he says he deleted later that night. A former fire captain also testified, saying that what he saw that day will “haunt” him forever. 

“Emotional distress” is at the heart of Vanessa Bryant’s case, and she’s aiming to receive millions of dollars in restitution. It’s, of course, unclear as to how the judge might rule at this point. But it’s likely that as the trial continues, Bryant will still have the support of Shaquille O’Neal and others.

The Kobe Bryant photo trial is moving along, as Vanessa Bryant seeks restitution over the crash site images that were taken and disseminated by first responders in 2020. Thus far, the trial has included a number of notable testimonies, many of which have been from law enforcement officials who were on the scene. This week, another sheriff’s deputy took to the witness stand to give his testimony and revealed that he shared controversial Kobe photos while playing video games with a fellow cop. 

Said testimony was made by Deputy Mike Russell this past Tuesday, according to the New York Post. While on the witness stand, Russell explained that he shared the photos with fellow Santa Clarita deputy Ben Sanchez the day after Kobe Bryant died alongside his daughter, Gianna, and seven others. Russell testified that he was lounging on his easy chair and playing Call of Duty when he asked if Sanchez wanted to see the pictures from the crash site. Sanchez answered in the affirmative and was apparently sent at least three photos from the scene. 

While on the stand, Mike Russell asserted that he “[doesn’t] find dead bodies entertaining or amusing.” He’d also say that he’d made a “callous mistake” by sharing the photos with Ben Sanchez, who was apparently not involved with the investigation. Russell would go on to say that he shared the photos “in order to get through the stresses of the day before.” Russell also admitted to having five false statements in a three-paragraph memo regarding the situation. Per the Post, the department took no disciplinary action against him.

Vanessa Bryant is suing Los Angeles County for negligence and invasion of privacy. It’s been argued that Bryant has experienced “emotional distress,” and gauging that has been critical in determining whether she’s entitled to the millions of dollars she’s seeking. Internet messages have played a major role in the case thus far and, just recently, it was reported that taunting social media messages involving Kobe would be shown to jurors. However, messages sent to Vanessa before her husband’s death became public knowledge were excluded from the case. 

In terms of Mike Russell’s testimony, he also said that the images had been sent to him by another officer, Sheriff’s Deputy Joey Cruz. Cruz testified on both Monday and Tuesday and admitted to sharing the photos with other people, one of which was a bartender friend. While explaining his rationale for showing him the photos, Cruz said that he needed someone to “vent” to. And in his own testimony, the bartender dismissed claims that he laughed when being shown the images. 

Another person who has taken to the witness stand is Sheriff’s Deputy Doug Johnson, who said he “didn’t do anything wrong.” Johnson, who was said to have taken 25 photos at the crash site and sent them to a colleague, said his actions were “common practice” for such a situation. He also said that he deleted the photos from his personal cell phone that night. A former fire captain also provided testimony this week, though he was apparently hesitant to answer questions regarding whether he shared photos. One of the sentiments he did share, however, was that the crash scene will “haunt” him forever.

The judge and jury will hear from Vanessa Bryant herself later this week. With that, further updates on the ongoing trial should arrive relatively soon.

Vanessa Bryant is still in the courtroom, as her case against Los Angeles County progresses. Bryant is suing the county for negligence and invasion of privacy over photos of her husband and daughter’s helicopter crash site, which were apparently taken and distributed by first responders. So far, there have been several testimonies during the trial, with one of the latest coming from a former fire captain. And per reports, the man left the stand a number of times and testified that the crash site would “haunt” him forever. 

Former captain Brian Jordan took to the stand on Monday, during which he was cross-examined by one of Vanessa Bryant’s lawyers about whether he took photos at the crash site. However, Jordan reportedly hesitated to answer certain questions and became uncomfortable while thinking back to the day Kobe Bryant died. According to CNN, he left the witness stand three times while being questioned. In one instance, he left after being asked if Bryant’s remains were captured in the photos. Faced with that, Jordan reportedly said, “I need a break, I need a break” before standing up and apologizing to the judge. 

During the trial, Brian Jordan, who retired in 2021, said that he didn’t recall taking photos due to having blocked out the memories. Though he would later say that a supervisor asked him to take photos at the site. In the midst of questioning, Jordan also claimed that the only reason he was present at the trial was because “someone threw my name into this whole thing.” Despite his apparent trepidation when it came to answering the queries, he did make a sobering statement about the situation: 

During those breaks, the man was accompanied by his lawyer, Steven Haney, who provided an alleged reason for them. Haney asserted that his client’s exits were due to “a medical condition associated with his viewing of the crash scene,” and it reportedly still causes him “trauma.” 

Aside from the retired fire captain, sheriff’s deputy Doug Johnson also testified during the case. Johnson was questioned about taking and sharing photos from the Calabasas crash site and stated his belief that he “didn’t do anything wrong.” He said that it was “common practice” to take photos and share them with fellow officials and claimed that he deleted said pictures from his phone later that day. 

The Kobe Bryant case also included testimony from a bartender, who denied claims that he laughed when being shown photos of the crash site. The person who apparently showed him the pics, L.A. County Sheriff's Deputy Joey Cruz, has since taken the stand as well, saying that bar employee was a friend he could “vent” to. Cruz is expected to return to the stand today.

Vanessa Bryant is seeking millions of dollars in her suit, also claiming that she’s experienced emotional distress due to the taking and distribution of the photos. Taunting social media messages involving Kobe have also been brought into the case but in a limited capacity. Meanwhile, Christopher Chester, who lost his wife and daughter in the crash, is also suing L.A. county on the same grounds as Bryant. However, it’s been argued that the two cases cannot be consolidated, as it would allow Chester to ride her “coattails.”

It goes without saying that this court case has been emotionally draining for those involved. Further updates on Vanessa Bryant's case will likely arrive soon.

Following numerous delay’s Vanessa Bryant’s court case against Los Angeles County is now in motion. Bryant is suing the county over photos of Gianna and Kobe Bryant’s helicopter crash site, which were reportedly taken and circulated by first responders who showed up on the scene. Vanessa claims she’s experienced “emotional distress” as a result of the situation, a notion that’s been questioned by L.A. County’s legal team. The trial has included a number of notable developments thus far and, more recently, a sheriff’s deputy who reportedly snapped photos took the stand to testify, saying that he “didn’t do anything wrong.”

This past week, Sheriff’s Deputy Doug Johnson testified in federal court, where he addressed the pictures that he took at the Calabasas helicopter crash site in 2020. Johnson, who says he hiked for more than an hour through the woods to get to the site, took 25 photos in total. According to CBS News Los Angeles some of the images depicted close-ups of body parts. Johnson testified that he sent the pictures to the command post deputy via text. He also said that he sent the photos to an unidentified county fire supervisor. 

Doug Johnson went on to say that he did not consider it unprofessional to have the photos on his personal cell phone, which he says he lost a year later in Las Vegas. In his estimation, it’s “common practice” for county officials to distribute such photos amongst each other. The sheriff’s deputy went on to say that “photographs are the most accurate and thorough way to document” crash sites and that he’d used his phone in similar situations “thousands of times.” Johnson also stated that later that night, he deleted the images from his cell, along with a text thread with the command post’s deputy. 

Lawyers for Vanessa Bryant and Christopher Chester, who lost his wife and daughter in the crash, argued that after the law enforcement official sent out the images, they were sent out to at least 10 others. They further claim that said individuals allegedly sent them to other members of the public. During the trial, L.A. County Sheriff's Deputy Joey Cruz was said to have shown the photos to patrons at a bar/grill. With that, in court, bartender Victor Gutierrez addressed claims that he laughed when shown the images, denying that he did so.

Much has been said about the personal effects the 2020 tragedy has had on Vanessa Bryant. Aside from the photos taken by first responders, her legal team has also brought taunting social media messages into the proceedings. However, the only posts that can be used are those that were sent to her after the deaths of Kobe, Gianna and the helicopter's other seven passengers became public knowledge. 

The Kobe Bryant photos have resulted in a few other legal situations, including the lawsuit filed by the aforementioned Christopher Chester. Like Bryant’s widow, Chester is suing for negligence and invasion of privacy over the photos being taken. At one point, it seemed as though the two cases might be consolidated, though L.A. County argued that Chester could not ride Vanessa’s “coattails,” so to speak. Another suit was also filed by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s union in relation to the release of the final internal affairs reports on the crash. That Bryant-related case has since settled, though.

Testimony in Vanessa Bryant and L.A. County’s court case is set to continue today. If the judge finds fault with the distribution of the photos and rules in her favor at the end of the trial, Bryant could receive the millions of dollars she's currently seeking.

Vanessa Bryant’s lawsuit against L.A. County – which is centered around first responders who allegedly circulated photos of her husband Kobe and daughter Gianna’s deadly 2020 helicopter crash site – faced several delays in the preliminary stages. Obviously, the early days of the pandemic postponed many court dates, this one included, and the mountain of initial evidence presented by both Vanessa’s legal team (who was scolded for sharing so much) and the defense later had to be parsed down. They’re finally in front of a jury now, though. In the latest development from the trial, a bartender witness addresses the claim that he laughed when he was shown the pictures.

TMZ reports that Victor Gutierrez confirmed in court on August 12 that L.A. County Sherrif’s Deputy Joey Cruz offered to show him snaps of the crash site at the Baha Grill in Los Angeles where Gutierrez works. Apparently, he and other employees there, as well as some bar bystanders, viewed the horrific images which reportedly included ones of the nine victims’ remains. However, the bartender testified that the deputy’s actions weren’t malicious, in his view, but only to release some of the burden of what he saw.

The attorney for Kobe Bryant’s widow pushed back in their cross examination of the witness. Particularly, they asked if Victor Gutierrez had found the pictures funny at that time. He denied it, but then bar surveillance video was presented in court of Gutierrez supposedly laughing in the moment. He again denied the insinuations, adding that anyone who found humor in those images would be “psychotic.”

The reason the bar scenario is coming up in court is because Vanessa Bryant is claiming that the circulation of the crash site pictures by county officials invaded her right to privacy, regarding images of deceased loved ones. What's more is that it's been stipulated that the potential of these now-public, gruesome pics coming across her online feed at any given time without her consent is causing Bryant emotional distress.

Taunting social media posts are in fact at the heart of the lawsuit in question. The judge had ruled ahead of the trial that some messages that Vanessa Bryant received online in the wake of the crash were “admittedly relevant as a taunt,” and consequently, potential evidence of emotional distress. Some, though, were deemed inadmissible for the trial due to Bryant receiving them before it became public knowledge that L.A. County responders had circulated anything – therefore, making them largely “hearsay” in this case. However, a message that threatened to “leak Kobe’s body” and a post with an aerial view shot (supposedly from the county) are among those counted as evidence.

When the trial first kicked off on August 11, per the outlet, the plaintiff's legal team (which now includes an expert from Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s trial) made opening statements that outlined in full the eight deputies who took personal pics of the deceased bodies. As they tell it, the photos were spread by responders at an awards gala, shared with a woman at a bar, and dispersed among their family members. Consequently, Kobe Bryant’s wife was seen sobbing openly in court that day.

It’s only been two days so far in what's expected to be a 10-day trial, but it’s clearly going to be emotional affair for those close to the former NBA legend, of whom was recently paid tribute to at the ESPY Awards by Klay Thompson. More updates on the case are sure to arrive sooner rather than later.

For months now, Vanessa Bryant has been pursuing legal action against Los Angeles County in the aftermath of the helicopter crash that killed her husband, Kobe Bryant, daughter Gianna and seven others. Vanessa is specifically suing because of “emotional distress” and more as a result of crash site photos being taken and disseminated by first responders on the scene. Following delays, the proceedings are finally set to start this week but, ahead of that, the presiding judge has made a key ruling regarding how taunting messages of Kobe Bryant will come into play during the case.

In 2020, Vanessa Bryant was reportedly sent multiple social media messages before it was revealed that the aforementioned first responders had spread the photos. Judge John F. Walter recently ruled that said posts cannot be shown to jurors during the trial, per Law & Crime. Though Walter did rule that any of the messages that were sent after that knowledge was revealed can be shown to jurors. Walter acknowledged that the messages are “hearsay,” as LA County’s lawyer argued. But the judge also says that such posts can be presented because jurors won’t be looking at them in order to accept them as truth. Instead, they’ll be used to give an idea of what the plaintiff was feeling when she saw them.

John F. Walter also spoke to the messages that cannot be included, specifically discussing one that he says is “admittedly relevant as a taunt.” Despite his thinking on that, Walter made note of the fact that said post includes a doctored image not taken by LA County officials, saying that it has “shock value that is obviously prejudicial.”

One of the messages that is eligible for presentation, though, is one that threatened to “leak Kobe’s body” to the public. Another acceptable post featured an aerial shot that is believed to have been snapshotted by the county. When arguing on Vanessa Bryant’s behalf, attorney Luis Li said that his client and her family “will have to have a very difficult relationship with the Internet for the rest of their lives,” due to the photos being circulated. 

Vanessa Bryant has experienced a number of ups and downs during the lead-up to the trial. In early July, Bryant’s legal team was scolded for presenting too much evidence during a pretrial hearing. Bryant more recently brought on an expert from Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s defamation case. Said person was a rebuttal specialist who argued on behalf of Depp, who was ultimately favored in the verdict.

As Kobe Bryant’s widow has continued through her legal situation, other lawsuits stemming from the crash have taken shape. Christopher Chester, whose wife and daughter were also killed during the incident, is also suing in regard to the circulation of the crash site photos. Though he’ll have to proceed with legal action on his own, as he reportedly won’t be able to ride Vanessa’s “coattails” by having the cases consolidated. Another lawsuit was also filed by the union for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, though that Bryant photo case has since settled.

With jury selection taking place this week, Vanessa Bryant’s case will truly start in earnest. We’ll have to wait and see what other messages are shared in the courtroom. However, one may assume that said posts could be very important to determining the outcome of the case.

Vanessa Bryant is still in the midst of a legal battle stemming from the sudden deaths of her husband, Kobe Bryant, and their daughter, Gianna. Vanessa is suing Los Angeles County over photos that were taken and allegedly circulated by first responders at the site of the helicopter crash. The case has taken a few interesting turns thus far, with Bryant having experienced a few setbacks. Now, she’s made a new move, likely in an attempt to better her chances in court. According to a new report, Bryant has enlisted the services of an expert from Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s defamation trial. 

Richard John Shaw, the forensic psychiatrist and Stanford University professor who testified during Amber Heard and Johnny Depp’s case, has been recruited by Vanessa Bryant’s lawyers. Per Law & Crime, Bryant’s team filed notice earlier this week, and the hire comes just ahead of the trial’s jury selection, which is set to begin on August 10th. Shaw is reportedly set to testify as a rebuttal witness in this latest court case.

This latest development arrives as “emotional distress” and Instagram come into play in the lawsuit. As of late, LA County has argued to have the social media posts from Kobe Bryant’s widow included in the trial. The county’s legal team asserts that the photos Vanessa shared indicate that she is not experiencing the “emotional distress” that she’s claimed. According to Law & Crime, Bryant’s lawyers recently tried to exclude a testimony from psychiatrist and professor Mark A. Cohen. In his report, Cohen argued that he did not find evidence that Bryant “has been mentally harmed or emotionally damaged from crash-scene photographs of her late husband and daughter being shared.”

During Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s highly publicized case, Richard John Shaw served as a rebuttal expert for the former. Ultimately, the verdict fell in Depp’s favor, as the actor was awarded $8.3 million in compensatory and punitive damages. Shaw has already disputed Mark A. Cohen’s findings, arguing in a 21-page report that, “it is possible that a person could suffer significant distress and anxiety, potentially for the rest of his or her life, from learning that his or her loved ones’ mutilated remains were photographed by multiple first responders for personal use…”

The social media revelation is only one of the setbacks that Vanessa Bryant has faced amid this lawsuit. Earlier this month, the judge scolded Bryant’s legal team for presenting too much evidence in a pretrial hearing. Judge John Walter also took LA County to task for doing the same and told both groups that they needed to “get together and start getting these trial exhibits in some semblance of order.”

Amid the case of Kobe Bryant’s widow, a few other lawsuits have been filed as well. One comes from Christopher Chester, who lost his wife and daughter in the helicopter crash and is also suing due to the photos. LA County has since argued that with the similarity of their cases, Chester cannot “ride [Vanessa] Bryant’s coattails.” Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department was also involved in a Bryant-related case, though that has now settled. 

Vanessa Bryant’s trial is reportedly set to begin sometime in August. We’ll see whether the hiring of Richard Jon Shaw will work in Bryant’s favor.

In the aftermath of the helicopter accident that killed Kobe Bryant, his teenage daughter, Gianna, and several others back in 2020, it was reported that the first responders on the scene later circulated photos of the crash site. As a result, the NBA legend’s widow, Vanessa Bryant, filed a lawsuit against L.A. County, which is moving forward slowly but surely. The latest details to come out regarding the case address how “emotional distress” and Instagram are at the heart of the matter.

Previously, the presiding judge scolded both Vanessa Bryant’s legal team and the defense for putting forth hundreds of pages in court concerning exhibits that had no “semblance of order.” The two camps were supposedly ordered to whittle things down to the most important pieces of evidence, so it would not become a “never-ending battle.” Alas, no such luck because it seems now that it’s a battle over what is and is not important. According to documents filed in district court, obtained by Law & Crime, L.A. County is fighting heavily for Bryant’s Instagram posts to be included in the upcoming trial. As they see it, the images and words therein are “critical” in gauging how much (or how little) the circulated crash photos actually caused her “emotional distress” as she claims. The questions they want to investigate in court with them include:

The filing attaches nearly 90 different Instagram posts from the 40-year-old mother’s account. Among them are images related to Kobe Bryant’s now-called Mamba and Mambacita Sports Foundation, Vanessa’s laughing selfies and magazine cover shoots. There are also several posts that show her posing with other celebs – like Vin Diesel, Tyrese, JLo, Ciara, Kris Jenner and more – as well as in various countries for family vacations. The outlet noted that one post – where Vanessa was dressed up as Disney’s Cruella de Vil for Halloween and made comments about “revenge” being part of the grieving process – might be particularly damaging for her suit.

The implication from L.A. County appears to be that if the late basketball star’s wife is claiming emotional distress, that doesn't seem to be the case based on her Instagram feed. The docs state that a jury would need to see these exhibits for themselves in order to properly judge whether the crash site photos were the real cause of any alleged distress or if it was just the crash itself:

However, Vanessa Bryant is fighting against these posts from becoming part of the trial slated for August. Her argument is that the star-studded and lavish pics would potentially cause the jury to be biased towards her. In other words, if they see she lives a rather comfortable lifestyle (one that she’s technically always had since marrying Kobe back in 2001), then they might decide the outcome based on need rather than fairness. She alleges too that the defense’s exhibits are not only irrelevant but also confusing and unnecessary.

The judge is expected to rule on the Instagram posts in question in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, the sports world continues to mourn the loss of the former Los Angeles Lakers player to this day. Homage was famously paid to Kobe Bryant on ESPN’s The Last Dance docuseries (now available for Netflix subscribers to stream). On July 20, too, Golden State Warrior Klay Thompson honored both Kobe and his daughter Gigi during his ESPY award acceptance speech, which Vanessa responded to personally on Instagram, saying that Thompson was a “class act.”

She has been steadfast as well in her tributes to her late husband and daughter on social media, to include the rather heartbreaking message last August on what was supposed to be the Black Mamba’s 42nd birthday. Hopefully, the current lawsuit finds a resolution sooner rather than later.

It's hard to believe that almost two years have passed since Lakers great Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna (a.k.a. Gigi) were among the nine killed in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California. The tragic loss of young lives — including one of the greatest basketball players in NBA history — still haunts the Black Mamba’s fans and those playing professional basketball. Golden State Warrior Klay Thompson said as much on Wednesday, July 20, when he accepted the ESPY Award for Best Comeback Athlete, crediting the entire Bryant family for their part in his journey, and Kobe’s wife Vanessa responded to his kind words.

Klay Thompson returned to Golden State this January, after spending more than two years battling injuries: first a torn ACL and then a torn Achilles tendon. Upon his return, he helped his team win an NBA Championship — something he said wouldn’t have been possible without Kobe Bryant’s inspirational words. The Warrior seemed to get a little emotional as he accepted his ESPY, concluding his speech by saying:

It turns out that Vanessa Bryant was watching, because she shared a video of Klay Thompson’s acceptance speech to her Instagram, thanking him for the sweet sentiment and for not only keeping her husband’s memory alive, but also her daughter’s. She wrote:

Continuing to share stories about Kobe Bryant and Gigi is one way to ensure their legacies live on after the tragic crash on January 26, 2020, and Vanessa Bryant has been carrying that torch — with the help of many others — by posting about special memories they shared, and honoring her late husband on his birthday. 

Vanessa Bryant deserves so much credit for the way she’s been able to stay strong for her three daughters, especially dealing with her grief in front of the entire world and continuing to fight legal battles related to the crash. There’s no doubt how much it means when today’s athletes show that her husband’s contributions are not forgotten, and Gigi’s spirit lives on as well. 

If you want to look back on the life and legacy of the former Laker, his five NBA Championships and the forces that drove the Black Mamba to be one of the best basketball players in history, check out these documentaries and specials about Kobe Bryant, including how to stream them.

There have been a number of legal battles at play related to the tragic death of NBA legend Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, and seven others in a 2020 helicopter crash. The late athlete's wife, Vanessa Bryant, has filed suit against the first responders who allegedly took photos of the crash site and circulated them. In addition, another individual who lost relatives due to the tragic accident is seeking legal restitution. While those cases are still ongoing, it would seem that another one has settled. 

The union for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department had been engaged in a legal battle against Sheriff Alex Villanueva and 20 unidentified individuals in an attempt to halt the release of the final internal affairs reports on the helicopter crash. Per Spectrum 1 News though, over two years after filing suit, the organization has settled on the matter. Lawyers for the group recently filed the notice of settlement. Had the legal proceedings continued, a non-jury would’ve taken place on September 13th.

In February 2020, the sheriff said that he’d tasked eight deputies with deleting photos of the crash site from their devices after they allegedly took said pictures while on the scene. The aforementioned internal investigation, however, was initiated when it was discovered that deputies had shared photos within the department and reportedly in one public situation. 

The LASD union’s petition mentioned a May 2020 press conference, where Alex Villaneuva provided an update, saying that they were “still completing the investigation.” He also noted that when it was finished, the department “will be releasing it publicly with all the information that will answer all your questions.” Villaneuva reportedly doubled down on the department’s intention to “make the entire investigation public so everybody can read it for themselves,” during another presser ten days later. Following the recent settlement, officials did not publicly divulge terms.

Elsewhere, Vanessa Bryant continues to pursue legal action against Los Angeles County. She filed suit in November 2021, though the proceedings have been delayed somewhat due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Most recently, there was a slight setback on the plaintiff’s part, as Bryant’s legal team was scolded for presenting too much evidence during a pre-trial hearing. Additionally, there’s been another significant development related to her lawsuit. 

Christopher Chester, whose wife and daughter were unfortunately killed in the crash, is also suing in relation to the photos. However, it was recently determined that his suit cannot be consolidated with Mrs. Bryant’s. In other words, LA County argued that Chester cannot “ride Bryant’s coattails.” The motion referred to this as “an unusual case” since it involves such a “revered icon” like Kobe Bryant. 

That level of recognizability has been evident since Kobe Bryant’s passing. In the aftermath, stars like Jimmy Fallon have paid tribute on the anniversary of his death. And others have further solidified his legacy by purchasing Bryant-related memorabilia. Vanessa Bryant has also sought to continue his legacy. She has also paid tribute to Kobe on his birthdays and, shortly after he passed, she told a sentimental story involving the dress from The Notebook.

The settlement of the LASD union’s suit marks the closing of a significant chapter in the aftermath of the basketball legend’s passing. But with Vanessa Bryant and co. still seeking legal satisfaction, things appear to be far from over.

Over two years after Kobe Bryant’s death, his wife finds herself in the midst of a legal battle connected to the tragic accident that took the lives of her husband and their 13-year-old daughter, Gianna. Vanessa Bryant filed suit in November 2021 over the sharing of photographs from the helicopter crash. As the legal proceedings continue, a new development has recently arisen that pertains to another case connected to the fatal crash. Los Angeles County argues that a man whose wife and daughter were among the nine killed in the incident cannot “ride Bryant’s coattails.”

The person in question is Christopher Chester who, like Vanessa Bryant, sued Los Angeles County for the sharing of graphic photos from the scene of the accident. Both allege that the images were taken and circulated by the first responders that arrived on the scene. The county has since stated that photos were indeed taken but that they were not distributed to the public. This week, the county filed a motion to keep the two suits from being consolidated, according to Law & Crime. It argues that while their cases “arise from the same tragic incident” they possess enough differences that “consolidating them for trial would create jury confusion and risk a fair trial.” The motion also reads:

To make its case, LA County also referred to a pretrial conference that involved Christopher Chester’s lawyer. Apparently, when asked if there was evidence that the photos of the man’s wife and daughter were disseminated, “Chester’s lawyer dissembled” and “conflated the evidence in the two cases.” Per the motion, such an action exemplifies “substantial prejudice” that could be aimed at the county should the two cases be consolidated.

The motion also refers to this as “a most unusual case,” given the fact that “Kobe Bryant was a revered icon,” which is certainly the truth. In the aftermath of the 2020 crash, numerous people shared tributes and even purchased plenty of Bryant-related memorabilia. ESPN’s The Last Dance even saluted Bryant in an episode. One year after his passing, Jimmy Fallon and more shared touching tributes, while his former teammate Shaquille O’Neal marked the anniversary by checking on Bryant’s parents. 

Vanessa Bryant has seemingly been doing everything that she can to keep her husband and daughter’s memory alive. Last year, Bryant posted a tender message on her husband’s birthday and, shortly after his death, she shared a sweet story about the late athlete that involved the dress from The Notebook.

At present, it would seem that Vaness Bryant, whose legal team was recently scolded for presenting too much evidence in a pretrial hearing, is moving full steam ahead with her lawsuit. And now, due to this latest development, it looks like it’ll be moving forward separately from Christopher Chester’s. Aside from Chester and Bryant, two other families also filed suit against LA County and have since settled. Only time will tell how things will play out for the two cases that are still in motion.

It’s been more than two years since the death of Kobe Bryant and the eight other passengers who were aboard his fatal helicopter flight, including his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna. As wife and mother to the deceased, Vanessa Bryant will understandably never be able to forget what happened – and she’s not letting others, either. To this day, she is still seeking justice in a high-profile lawsuit against the first responders who allegedly took and circulated photos of the crash site. However, the judge presiding over the case apparently had cause to scold Vanessa’s legal team of late in the sensitive matter.

Los Angeles County itself and its sheriff, fire departments and supposed officers involved, were all named in the suit leveled by the late basketball player’s widow. The onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 significantly delayed the trial date but, according to reporting by Insider, it’s hit a different snag altogether in recent months. Evidently, California District Judge John Walter criticized both sides for presenting too much evidence during a pre-trial hearing. He said:

The judge continued that it would be a “never-ending battle” if Vanessa Bryant’s team and the defense didn’t whittle down the excessive documents to those of most import. A representative for L.A. County made a statement to the outlet that they are complying with the judge’s orders.

Kobe Bryant’s wife is specifically suing the state of California for the alleged crash site images causing emotional distress and being an invasion of privacy. But on the federal side, she invokes the constitutional right to images of deceased loved ones being hers alone, which was reportedly violated when the view of the crash site was disseminated without her consent after the fact. As a result, the judge stated that the competing legal jurisdictions here means that the trial will be split into two, with allegations against the state being addressed first. The proceedings will tentatively take place in August.

After Vanessa Bryant, the death of the NBA legend hit the sports world the hardest back in 2020, with homage given in one episode of ESPN’s The Last Dance (now streaming with a Netflix subscription). But fans and celebs alike would eventually open up about what Kobe Bryant meant to them. For instance, touching tributes were paid to him by Jimmy Fallon, Jemele Hill and more on the first anniversary of his death last year.

His memory continues to endure elsewhere, most notably through Vanessa Bryant. She shared an emotional story related to him and The Notebook’s iconic blue dress only a month after his passing. She also posted a heartbreaking message on what would’ve been Kobe’s 42nd birthday last August.

More details on the lawsuit are sure to surface in the coming weeks. In the meantime, viewers can still check out the five documentaries and specials about Kobe Bryant that are out on streaming platforms now.

Basketball fans have had debates regarding who the true GOAT is for years now. Today, the conversation arguably boils down to three players: Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. And when that list even gets whittled down, it sometimes only leaves Jordan and Bryant. It’s honestly hard to compare the two, especially when both were so dominant within their respective eras. Though at least one basketball great believes that the late NBA legend was more skilled than the prolific Chicago Bull. 

Tracy McGrady is one of the NBA alums that had the opportunity to face off with both of the legends during his professional career. The former Toronto Raptor didn’t get to play MJ too much while the six-time NBA champion was in his prime, but McGrady did have plenty of meet-ups with the Black Mamba. While appearing on ESPN’s First Take, was asked his thoughts on the debate and quickly chose the Lakers icon. While he was respectful of His Airness, he believes the LA alum improved upon the things that the Chicago vet established:

Some may not agree with this assessment, but the hall of famer is certainly correct in saying that Kobe Bryant had serious skills. When he was on the court, it seemed as though he had no fear and could take over a game in a matter of minutes. Tracy McGrady would know this better than most, especially considering just how many times he faced off with Bryant’s Lakers during his career. The showdowns between them and T-Mac’s Houston Rockets in the 2000s were particularly exciting.

The late player endeared himself to more than a few people as both an athlete and a man during his time on earth. On the first anniversary of his death, tributes from Jimmy Fallon, Jemele Hill and more poured in. His on-court comrades have also gotten emotional while reflecting on his memory. Allen Iverson was one of the many to pay tribute and, earlier this year, he had a sweet response after being asked to sign a picture of him and No. 81. Michael Jordan also paid a loving tribute to his “little brother” during his public memorial service.

While both athletes were fiercely competitive, they had a bond that endured for years. Michael Jordan and ESPN’s The Last Dance (which is streamable with a Netflix subscription), even featured a tribute that Kobe Bryant fans likely appreciated. It’s like they say, game recognizes game. 

Of course, Air Jordan is also “great” in his own right. Yet Dwyane Wade doesn’t know if the sports legend will be considered a GOAT much longer. Wade delivered a particularly sobering thought, stating that fans will soon forget about MJ “the way we forget about Kareem [Abdul Jabbar].”

The debate is only going to continue as time goes on and more talent enters the NBA. Tracy McGrady’s position is more than clear, though and, unless a true phenom hits the hardwood over the next decade or so, his mind more or less won’t change.

To millions of fans around the world, Kobe Bryant was one of the most imposing people to ever set foot on a basketball court. But to those who were fortunate enough to play alongside or even against him, he was a colleague and friend. Bryant balled with the best, including hall of fame point guard Allen Iverson. Together, the Black Mamba and the Answer thrilled audiences but, in the midst of that, they built a brotherly bond that endured for years. So when Iverson spotted a poster of him and the late athlete, he had a very sweet response. 

The 46-year-old Allen Iverson recently appeared at a public event in Texas, where he signed autographs for fans. During the meet-and-greet, he was approached by a young fan, who handed him the throwback poster showing him with Kobe Bryant. The veteran star seemed taken aback and gazed over it for a moment, before responding in a way that most basketball fans would: 

It was a sentimental moment, to say the least, and one that both the former point guard and the fan likely won’t forget. As captured by kkcameron of Instagram, the Philadelphia 76ers legend signed the poster and, not only that, he provided the young man with a bit of invaluable advice. Check out the heartwarming exchange in its entirety in the post down below:

I mean, no big deal, just an NBA GOAT casually letting a kid know that he should strive to listen to his parents. I don’t know about that kid but, if Allen Iverson had advised me to step it up at that age, I definitely would’ve done it. Quite frankly, you love to see the sports staple paying it forward in such a way. You also can’t help but get a little teary-eyed when seeing him react to that poster. 

Kobe Bryant and Allen Iverson both entered the NBA back in 1996, with the latter being selected with the first pick in the draft and the former being acquired with the 13th pick. Both would have stellar rookie seasons and, as most know, they’d go on to become two of the league’s marquee names. Though the two had plenty of incredible matchups, their most notable may be their meeting in the Finals in 2001. Iverson attempted to will his team to victory, but the Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal-led Lakers emerged victorious. The loss may still sting for A.I., but it seems the memories of his former on-court rival are what have really stayed with him all these years. 

Since Kobe Bryant’s death in 2020, many have taken time to pay tribute to him and share their fondest memories of him. Immediately after the news broke, former players and celebrity friends honored the man, and even ESPN’s The Last Dance paid homage to his storied career. On the first anniversary of his death, stars like Jimmy Fallon continued to reflect, while Shaquille O’Neal sweetly checked in on his late teammate’s parents. And of course, Bryant’s wife, Vanessa, has also kept her husband’s name alive, paying tribute to him on personal occasions and continuing his charitable efforts. 

His death, and that of his 13-year-old daughter Gianna, is honestly still a hard pill to swallow. While he’s no longer with us, it’s those memories of him on the court and chopping it up with fans in public that can help provide comfort to Allen Iverson and others who knew and loved him. And for those looking to relive his theatrics on the basketball court and his accomplishments in the public eye, there are documentaries and specials you can check out.

2020 was a rough year for a number of reasons, and what really hit the entertainment world was the unfortunate number of celebrity deaths. One that arguably rocked the world the hardest was that of basketball legend Kobe Bryant, who alongside his 13-year-old daughter and several others, was killed in a helicopter crash. Bryant’s absence is still felt by many, especially his wife, Vanessa. She has been strong in honoring her husband’s memory, though, and she recently paid tribute to him with a tender message on his birthday. And yes, crying would be a natural response.

Kobe Bryant would’ve turned 42 this year, and fans have been taking to social media to remember the late basketball great. Vanessa Bryant paid tribute in her own way by posting a sweet throwback photo to Instagram. She also penned a short but sweet caption. Take a look down below:

I’m honestly still in amazement at how Vanessa Bryant has managed to maintain her composure since the passing of her husband and daughter. She recently experienced a particularly “rough” moment when dropping off oldest daughter Natalia at college. Nevertheless, she continues to exude strength and occasionally shares sweet memories like these.

Following Kobe Bryant’s death in January 2020, countless tributes poured in from celebrities across Hollywood. A public memorial service was also held for both him and daughter Gianna at the Staples Center, the home of the Los Angeles Lakers. The ceremony, which was attended by countless fans and celebrities, included remarks from NBA greats like Shaquille O’Neal and Michael Jordan.

The posthumous tributes to Kobe Bryant have been beautiful to see. One that likely meant a lot to fans was his appearance in ESPN’s The Last Dance. The series highlighted Bryant’s meeting with Michael Jordan at the 1998 NBA All-Star Game and featured bits of a posthumous interview with the Laker great.

Like Vanessa Bryant, those who knew Kobe Bryant best have been reflective and respectful of his vast legacy. Earlier this year, former teammate Shaquille O’Neal got candid about marking the one-year anniversary of Bryant’s death. O’Neal, who refers to himself as a “tough cookie,” did this by calling and checking on the late athlete’s parents. While the relationship between the two wasn’t always solid, they’d ultimately reconciled by the time Bryant passed, and it’s clear that O’Neal did care a great deal about his friend and colleague.

While the sting of Kobe Bryant’s death will probably remain with fans for years to come, they’ll still have plenty of memories of him that they can hold close. And as we continue to pay tribute to one of the greatest athletes the world has ever known, let’s also push even more positive energy toward his wife and daughters.

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It is hard to believe that it has already been a year since Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant’s life was cut tragically short when he, his daughter Gianna, and seven others perished in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California. The loss of “The Black Mamba” sent ripples through the sports and entertainment world, resulting in various tributes, specials, and remembrances of one of the best to ever lace up a pair of sneakers and take to the court. But even before his death on January 26, 2020, there were multiple Kobe Bryant documentaries and features about his life on and off the court he dominated all those years.

So, as we look back on the life and legacy of Kobe Bryant, his five NBA Championships, and the forces that drove him to be not only the best basketball player but father and human, here are just a few of the tremendous documentaries, long-form interviews, and other features about one of the absolute greatest to ever play the game of basketball.

Kobe Bryant’s Muse (2015)

There are few sports documentaries that are as introspective as the 2015 Showtime original Kobe Bryant’s Muse. Filmed during “The Black Mamba’s” return from injury in the twilight of his record-breaking career, the documentary is more of a series of contemplations by Bryant than anything else. With dramatically lit interview segments combined with various games and training sessions from throughout the 2014-2015 NBA season, Kobe Bryant’s Muse goes into what made made one of the most driven, intense, and competitive athletes tick and want to continue to push himself (and his teammates) to be best they could be.

Even with his body failing him and no longer having the physicality that made him such a dominating force in his youth, Kobe Bryant goes into great detail about having that drive to continue pushing forward, no matter how difficult it may be. This is abundantly clear when Bryant talks about his return to form following a serious foot injury, letting out a boyish smile as he talks about his motivations in that moment.

Stream it on Showtime here.

All The Smoke: Kobe Bryant (2019)

Shortly before his death in January 2020, Kobe Bryant gave one of his final interviews to Showtime’s All The Smoke video podcast. Sitting down with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, Bryant opens up about his career, looks back on some of his toughest competitors, and then finally his life after basketball, a new chapter that was just beginning before that tragic helicopter crash stole the creator from the world and left the book unfinished. Bryant spends a great deal of time talking about his Oscar-winning short film Dear Basketball (more on that later), and how excited he to continue with the art form in the future.

Following Kobe Bryant’s death, the All The Smoke podcast took the interview from months earlier and combined it with their reactions to his passing as well as those from some of Bryant’s fiercest competitors from his historic 19-year run at the top of the NBA. Part tribute and part catharsis, this special tribute gives us a chance to look back on one of the greatest while finding ways to continue his legacy.

Stream it on Showtime here.

HBO Real Sports’ Kobe Bryant Retrospective (2020)

There are plenty of reasons to get an HBO subscription, but one that doesn’t get talked about nearly enough is the long-running sports program Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel which has covered every major sporting event and controversy since taking the air in 1995. Over the years, the program’s reporters visited with Kobe Bryant on two occasions — 2000 when he was in the middle of three-peat with the Los Angeles Lakers and 2016 after his retirement from the NBA — and were able to get inside the head of “The Black Mamba” and find out what made him tick.

In the weeks following his death in 2020, Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel combined portions of these two segments and added a new introduction and other information regarding Kobe Bryant’s accident and where the sports world goes from here. Equal parts touching and enlightening (especially hearing Bryant talk about his production company), this look at No. 24’s life is a must-watch, more so now than ever before.

Stream it on the HBO Real Sports Facebook page here.

Spike Lee’s Lil’ Joints: Italian Imports (2015)

A part of Kobe Bryant’s life that came up a lot following his death was his upbringing in Italy where his father continued his professional basketball career. From the age of 6 until he was 13, Bryant lived and fell in love with Italy, becoming fluent in the language and continuing his love of basketball. Bryant opens up about this chapter of his life in the 2015 documentary series Spike Lee’s Lil’ Joints in an episode called “Italian Imports” with WNBA star Tamika Catchings who grew up alongside the future NBA legend in Italy.

There is something about the relaxed nature of this one-on-one conversation that is able to break down the steely exterior of Kobe Bryant. Watching him reminisce about spending a large portion of his youth with a longtime childhood friend creates one of the most enjoyable experiences you’ll see from the Lakers legend.

Stream it on the ESPN 30 for 30 Facebook page here.

BET & ET Present: Kobe: Father, Husband, Legend (2020)

Shortly after his death, ET and BET collaborated for a tribute to Kobe Bryant which spent a great deal of time focusing on his legacy off the court. In Kobe: Father, Husband, Legend, viewers are walked through some of the five-time NBA champion’s accomplishments outside of sports, with a major portion dedicated to the love he had for his wife and daughters as well as the steps he took to ensure they lived the best life possible.

The special also goes into great detail concerning the Kobe Bryant’s more creative side with an emphasis put on his work in the young adult fiction genre as well as his Academy Award winning short film Dear Basketball. Speaking of which…

Stream it on BET+ here.

Dear Basketball (2017)

This last entry isn’t technically a documentary, but Dear Basketball, the Oscar winning animated short film directed by Glen Keane and scored by John Williams, is not only based on a poem that Kobe Bryant wrote shortly before his retirement from the NBA (it’s also narrated by the late athlete), it also best documents his love for the game. Clocking it at just five minutes, Dear Basketball was Bryant’s way of saying goodbye to sport to which he dedicated most of his life, but also a signaling of the beginning of the next chapter in his life. And while we never got to see everything Bryant had in store for the world in terms of his Granity Studios production company, this beautifully written and animated short film is a perfect reminder of the love and determination that kept him going all those years.

Purchase it on Amazon here.

In the coming months and years, there will surely be even more great documentaries about Kobe Bryant, his impact on the game of basketball, and the way he continues to inspire athletes, artists, and the rest of us with his body of work. And if word is to be believed that Bryant brought a camera crew with him for the entirety of his final season in the NBA, we should be seeing another feature, one like The Last Dance at some point in the future.

For many fans, the death of NBA legend Kobe Bryant was devastating but, as you can imagine, it was even harder for his family and friends, including sports broadcaster and former player Shaquille O’Neal. O’Neal and Bryant won found great success as teammates on the Los Angeles Lakers and, on the one-year anniversary of Kobe Bryant’s death, the former basketball player opened up about what he did that morning.

Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant shared a bond many in sports could only dream of. During Bryant’s lifetime, the two went through their share of difficulties before making amends before Bryant’s death. A year after his former teammate's passing, it was only natural that the Inside the NBA host would be asked about how he marked the first-anniversary of the tragic incident. And when asked, O'Neal revealed that the first thing he did was reach out to Bryant’s parents:

When further discussing the day with Entertainment Tonight, Shaquille O’Neal went on to say that his main concern was only for Kobe Bryant's family, particularly his widow, Vanessa and their three daughters. O'Neal related his decision to reach out to Bryant's parents to his own status as a "mama's boy":

Through his actions, Shaquille O’Neal definitely showed how compassionate and thoughtful he is, especially when it comes to family. O’Neal’s heartfelt sentiment came on the heels of tributes from Jimmy Fallon and others on the first anniversary of Bryant’s sudden death.

As previously mentioned, Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant dominated the NBA for a number of years as members of the Los Angeles Lakers. Under the partnership, the Lakers won three consecutive NBA Finals from 2000 to 2002, with O’Neal winning the NBA MVP Award each time. But during their time as teammates, a feud emerged between the two players, resulting in O’Neal being traded to the Miami Heat in 2004. The feud between the two continued until O’Neal retired from the NBA in 2011. O’Neal and Bryant’s relationship were mended in the years leading up to Bryant’s death, and O’Neal would ultimately give a passionate speech at Bryant's public memorial in 2020.

His decision to reach out to Kobe Bryant's family just shows how deeply connected Shaquille O’Neal is with the late NBA legend. It's always good to check on friends and family when they're experiencing a hard time, and that's especially true in the times we're living in right now.

2020 was a year filled with tension, hardships and heartbreaks, and one of the most shocking tragedies was the death of NBA legend Kobe Bryant. His helicopter accident not only shocked those in the sports and entertainment industries, but people all around the world. On the anniversary of Bryant's death on January 26, Jimmy Fallon and many others decided to share touching tributes to the athlete and Oscar winner.

It has been a year since Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna, and nine others lost their lives in that helicopter crash. Since his death, many touching tributes have poured in across the Internet and beyond, especially from his widow Vanessa, despite the existence of media hiccups here and there. The Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon took to Twitter to post a moving tribute to Bryant. Check out the tweet below:

As evident by the clip Jimmy Fallon shared, he and Kobe Bryant shared a genuine friendship. The story they shared recalled a time before the pair became the pop culture figures they are now. Like many on this date, Fallon is grieving Bryant’s loss, and the former NBA star clearly continues to be a topic of conversation, with many other fans taking to social media to pay tribute to the late basketball player’s legacy and memory.

Kobe Bryant was revered as one of the NBA’s greatest players. But for some, his legacy was more about his philanthropic and social justice acts and being a decent man.

Along with Kobe Bryant, people often eulogize his daughter Gianna as well as the other victims. For many, she was viewed as the successor to Bryant’s basketball legacy.

Kobe Bryant was known for being personable and friendly in the latter part of his career. Some took the time to share those moments.

Looking back on Kobe Bryant’s death made it seem as if no time had passed. Some only met the NBA legend once, but he left a lasting impact on them.

This day points out how important Kobe Bryant was to the sport of basketball. For many, he served as an inspiration in the sport as well as the definition of what players should strive to be.

Along with mentoring young male and female basketball players, Kobe Bryant had a deep connection with other NBA icons. Over the course of his career, he was guided and mentored by players such as Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson.

Some people can even recall the moment they heard about Kobe Bryant's passing. His death caused many media outlets and organizations to shift their day. Some even paid tribute to the late NBA legend.

It was nice to see Kobe Bryant's life and legacy is celebrated on such a sad day. Seeing the various reactions from fans - both famous and not-so-famous - are reminders of how impactful Bryant’s life was on the world. The anniversary of his death shows the void he left behind and how raw people’s feelings still are a year later.

After a series of vintage Kobe Bryant items – including shoes, warm up gear, financial records and books – turned up in a California storage unit, fans who started tracking the story assumed that the buyer was about to turn an enormous profit on the open market. As it turns out, though, the memorabilia has been returned to the Bryant family, which is the appropriate and happiest resolution for all parties involved.

In case you hadn’t heard this story, Storage Wars stars Rene and Casey Nezhoda cashed in on a valuable find when they were tipped off to the discovery of a storage unit loaded with gear that seemingly belonged to the late NBA superstar Kobe Bryant. Nezhoda admits to paying $13,000 for the rights to the unit (and the merchandise), but TMZ Sports now reports that the professional bidder is turning the bulk of the material over to Bryant’s widow, Vanessa.

He tells TMZ:

The site reports that Kobe Bryant’s family reached out to Rene and Casey Nezhoda in hopes of attaining the memorabilia that belonged to the late basketball player. The storage unit reportedly contained 35 pairs of sneakers, five pieces of Los Angeles Lakers warm up gear, books that had been loaned to the NBA legend, financial paperwork, and a mink coat that the athlete had worn in a photo shoot.

Without question, Rene Nezhoda planned to turn around and sell that merchandise for a hefty profit. The couple specialize in finding rare merchandise, then succeeding in locating buyers for valuable goods obtained by grabbing up abandoned storage units. In a video that they released at the time of the sale, it was made clear that the Kobe Bryant items were not going to appear on Storage Wars, primarily because the show is not filming episodes at the moment. They also made it very clear up front that the storage unit did not BELONG to Kobe Bryant, but belonged to a reality television co-star who did fashion work for Kobe and Vanessa Bryant.

But now, thanks to this new report, TMZ is letting fans know that the Nezhodas have agreed to get the merchandise back in the hands of the Bryant family, and that’s a significant and compassionate step for the bargain hunters. While I totally understand that the couple did nothing wrong in obtaining the storage unit and the authentic Lakers gear that was inside, the family should have the first right of refusal to retrieve the items that belonged to Kobe Bryant.

Rene Nezhoda did not reveal how much money that he received from Vanessa Bryant, per terms of their agreement. TMZ does note that this was not about turning a profit for Nezhoda, and the site reports that he was able to keep a few items that likely were not worn by Kobe Bryant, such as shoes and shirts, and that Nezhoda will try and turn a profit on the open market with that gear.

It's a sad fact of life that any time a celebrity dies, the value of the things they owned / touched / had access to goes way up. From autographs to a wide array of personal effects, fans know that there will be nothing more to come from the famous person they admired and adored, so many of them are willing to pay a lot of money to have a piece of that person's history. Well, Storage Wars stars Rene and Casey Nezhoda have just found a collection of items which appear to have belonged to late basketball superstar and Oscar winner Kobe Bryant, and I'm sure many fans would love to get their hands on the property.

Rene and Casey Nezhoda own the San Diego, California store Bargain Hunters Thrift Store, and, as fans have seen across nine seasons of Storage Wars, they are very adept at buying abandoned storage units that lead them to some unexpected treasures. This time, the couple managed to luck into a stash of items which were likely used by the late Kobe Bryant, after getting a call from the original bidder who won the auction for the unit's items. As Nezhoda explained in a video on the couple's YouTube page for their business, that bidder ended up paying $375 for everything in the storage unit, but when the couple got wind of what was inside, they ponied up a cool $13,000 for it.

So, what was in the storage unit that the Nezhodas thought it was actually Kobe Bryant gear? Among the many items inside were 35 pairs of shoes, five pieces of L.A. Lakers warm up clothing (which they believe were all used), jerseys and an all-access badge with "MAMBA" written on it, which was the nickname Bryant gave to himself as a way to help separate his professional and personal lives. The unit also held financial paperwork, some books which appear to have been gifted to Bryant, and two fur coats, one of which is believed to have been worn by Bryant in some photos.

Some of the things in the storage unit are unworn and still have tags on them, but, lest you think Bryant was hoarding clothes he never planned to wear, it turns out that the unit likely didn't really belong to the famed b-ball player, who died tragically in late January at 41 (along with his 13-year-old daughter GiGi, and several others) after a helicopter crash. After getting a look at the goods, the Nezhodas believe that the storage unit actually belonged to celebrity stylist Derek Roche and his assistant Antron Oliver, though TMZ reports that Roche's representative says that's untrue.

Apparently, the winner of the items knew that Rene Nezhoda, in particular, is skilled at finding buyers for valuable storage treasures, and after finally getting a chance to see what was inside, spoke to him about taking the cache off of his hands. While the things which were found inside have yet to be fully authenticated, it's expected that once that happens, each of the items will be sold for quite a bit of money.

The Nezhodas also found plenty of items which lend some credence to the idea that some celeb stylist, if not Roche, did own the storage unit, including a lot of unworn designer clothing and accessories, as well as Versace shoes they believe were owned and used by rapper Lil' Kim. Apparently, the original auction winner wants a total of $26,000 for everything which was in the storage unit, so time will tell if Rene and Casey Nezhoda come away with the entire haul.

Nezhoda said that none of the Kobe Bryant items will be shown on Storage Wars, mostly because the show isn't actually filming right now, so he'll sell the finds to a reputable auction house. He also noted that they have offered any items which seem to be personal to Kobe Bryant or the family in general to his widow, Vanessa, before they're sold off. You can see the full video of the find, below:

I'm sure that there will be plenty of Kobe Bryant fans who will keep an eye out for these things to go up for auction. In the meantime, while we wait to get word on whether or not there will be a Season 13 of Storage Wars, check out our guide to fall TV to see what you can watch in the coming weeks.

For the past few weeks, ESPN’s The Last Dance, has been entertaining sports fans by diving into the Chicago Bulls championship run during the 1997-1998 NBA season. The docuseries has also taken the time to weave other NBA greats into the narrative as well. One of tonight’s episodes will heavily feature late Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, who had a special relationship with Michael Jordan. This installment will be emotional to say the least and, according to Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant fans will be pleased with it.

Magic Johnson, like many of us, has been enjoying The Last Dance and is looking forward to finishing it out, yet he’s particularly excited to watch the fifth chapter. Although Johnson opted against a sneak peek, he believes that fans of Kobe Bryant and the Lakers are going to get a lot of the episode:

As most know, Bryant died earlier this year along with his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna and seven others were killed in a helicopter crash. The first trailer for The Last Dance confirmed that Bryant was interviewed for the series and, with the project having begun production a few years ago, we can definitely assume that Bryant completed his interview segment.

Kobe Bryant also won’t be the only interviewee to appear in The Last Dance posthumously. Former NBA commissioner David Stern, who died of a brain hemorrhage earlier this year, is also set to appear in the docuseries.

The world was shaken by the death of Kobe Bryant and, months later, many sports fans are still grappling with the reality that the future Hall of Famer is gone. With this, many are likely both excited and dreading actually seeing him on screen due to those feelings coming back to the surface.

It’s sure to be a bittersweet experience, but Magic Johnson’s comments to The LA Times should still get Laker fans excited for tonight. Kobe Bryant may no longer be with us, but you can be sure that the crew of The Last Dance has done what they can to properly honor his memory. This will include a brief tribute to Bryant at the opening.

Basketball fans know that Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant shared a bond both as competitors and men, and it’ll be interesting to see how The Last Dance paints a picture of that connection. Let’s hope we still get to hear some trash talk as well.

The Last Dance airs Sundays on ESPN at 9 p.m. EST, and the docuseries will also be available to stream on Netflix this summer.

Spoilers ahead for Episode 6 of Station 19 Season 3, called "Ice Ice Baby."

Station 19 went in a chilly direction with "Ice Ice Baby" when Seattle was overwhelmed by a blizzard, leaving the first responders of Station 19 to pull out all the stops to welcome and care for civilians who needed shelter. In the process, Station 19 managed to drop a tribute to late basketball legend Kobe Bryant, and it was perfect.

Why would I say it's perfect, especially in a season that got off to a tragic start? Well, the tribute in question wasn't explicitly to Kobe Bryant's death, which rocked the world back in late January. Rather, it was a tribute to Kobe Bryant's legacy as a basketball player who impacted and inspired young fans everywhere, and it came in the simple form of a little girl playing basketball.

While Vic was entertaining a bunch of kids by shooting hoops with them, a little girl shot a basketball and yelled "Kobe!" as countless kids (and adults) have done before when trying to nail a shot just like Kobe Bryant would. It wasn't a sad moment concerned with the tragic fate of Bryant, his daughter, and the others who died in the helicopter crash, but rather a heartwarming moment.

Was this moment added to "Ice Ice Baby" to honor Kobe Bryant because of his death? Well, the episode may have been filmed before he died, as the news of his passing broke back on January 26, and it could be a coincidence that a kid was choosing to emulate Bryant during a blizzard on Station 19.

Yelling "Kobe!" while shooting a basketball -- or really throwing anything at anything -- isn't a new thing, and this could be a happy accident. Alternately, Station 19 could have added the audio of the little girl shouting "Kobe!" after Bryant died as a small but touching way to pay tribute to a basketball legend without lingering on his death.

Viewers watching "Ice Ice Baby" definitely caught the Kobe Bryant mention and hit social media to share their feelings:

One person broke out the heart emojis in the colors of the Los Angeles Lakers, where Kobe Bryant spent his entire basketball career.

Of course, even a tribute to Kobe Bryant that was more about honoring his legacy than mourning his death resulted in some sad fans:

This person on Twitter broke out a Kobe Bryant graphic to go with the crying emoji, which strikes me as both sweet and sad.

Whether people were left happy, sad, bittersweet, or nostalgic by the little girl shouting "Kobe!" on Station 19, they clearly cared. Here's just one further example of the many posts:

"Ice Ice Baby" was the first half of an unofficial crossover between Grey's Anatomy and Station 19. It wasn't billed as a crossover like Station 19's season opener, as Grey's characters didn't fill the episode, but the events of the Station 19 episode were clearly building to the next episode of Grey's Anatomy, and Vic was dealing with her first fight with Jackson.

See what happens next on Station 19 when new episodes air Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC, ahead of Grey's Anatomy. For more viewing options, swing by our 2020 midseason premiere schedule.

It’s been a month since Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna died in a helicopter crash. Fans, friends and family of the NBA legend have been mourning their unexpected passing. At the Staples Center on Monday, 20,000 guests came together to pay tribute to Kobe and GiGi. Michael Jordan, Shaquille O’Neal and Beyoncé were among the attendees who took to the stage to honor them, but perhaps the most touching was a 22-minute speech from Vanessa Bryant.

During a tearful tribute from Kobe Bryant’s wife and mother to his four children, she mentioned a thoughtful Valentine’s Day gift she once received from 2004 romance film, The Notebook. Back in 2013, he gifted her the actual dress Rachel McAdams wore during the famous scene when she and Ryan Gosling kiss in the rain. In Vanessa Bryant’s words:

That's heartbreaking. The couple actually separated and divorced back in 2011. Vanessa initially shared that Kobe Bryant gifted her the blue dress from The Notebook shortly after they announced they were back together in 2013. Not unlike the Nicholas Sparks story, the couple reunited. It’s the “grow old” part that becomes especially tender in the wake of his death. You can check out Vanessa’s Instagram post of the iconic dress below:

In her speech at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, Vanessa Bryant revealed that Kobe Bryant was “truly” the romantic one between the two of them. She recalled the anniversary trips he’d plan and gifts he’d give her to mark each year they were married. She continued with these words:

Kobe Bryant and Vanessa Bryant met when he was 21 and she was 17. She was his first girlfriend, and just six months after dating, they were engaged. During the memorial, Vanessa first took time to also pay tribute to her second daughter, Gianna, who died in the same crash on January 26 along with seven other people.

Karyn Wagner was the costume designer behind Allie’s dress in The Notebook. Along with the romance film, she’s also designed for almost 50 projects, including The Green Mile and AMC’s Preacher. She had no idea what became of the dress she made for Rachel McAdams after it was placed in storage after the movie. She told THR her reaction to Vanessa Bryant mentioning it:

Also in attendance at Kobe Bryant’s Monday memorial were Jimmy Kimmel (who hosted), Jennifer Lopez, Usher, Alicia Keys, Christina Aguilera, Michael Phelps, Jay Z, Snoop Dogg, Queen Latifah, Magic Johnson, Anthony Davis and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. It was held on the 24th to honor his famed Lakers number.

Nearly three weeks have passed since the untimely helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant, his daughter and seven others. The impact looms large across every walk of life, though not always in the most agreeable ways. Things got particularly heated recently after CBS posted a context-free interview clip showing Gayle King asking WNBA legend Lisa Leslie about the prior rape allegations made against Bryant. King's own anger at CBS was surpassed by Snoop Dogg's perceived-as-threatening rage against King on social media for touching upon that subject matter.

After initially only denying that his "before we come get you" phrasing was meant to be seen as a threat, Snoop Dogg took to Instagram with an apology for Gayle King for his actions. He kicked things off as such:

Snoop Dogg isn't so much pulling back on his feelings in the matter, or saying that he changed his mind about the questions being a wrong choice. However, he did acquiesce to his insulting and highly public posts about Gayle King being just as wrong, which only led to a subsection of each entertainer's friends and fans angrily calling the other side out. Whenever both Oprah Winfrey and Bill Cosby are part of the conversation, something went over the edge.

Continuing, Snoop Dogg offered a defense for the cause of his actions, if perhaps not the extent of them. (The influential rapper and game show host posted multiple memes angrily directed at Gayle King after his initial video outburst.) In his words:

Snoop Dogg, who is heading to Bikini Bottom this year, also acknowledged the importance of showing his fanbase that going public with an apology to someone that's been wronged is taking the high road. It was arguably a strange time to make that declaration in such a way, but so long as the apology is sincere, it creates a potential launching point for Snoop and Gayle King have an amicable talk about the rapidly heightened lambasting.

It's worth noting that CBS had previously apologized for going public with the standalone clip. Let's not forget that it was just over a year ago when rumors were flying that Gayle King was possibly looking for an exit from CBS News, and though she obviously ended up staying, this kind of situation will possibly leave a bad taste in her mouth for a long time.

You can watch Snoop Dogg's video apology below.

Only time will tell if Snoop Dogg will be able to apologize to Gayle King in person, and it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world if more people took the time to shower social media with apologies and remorse as opposed to impulsive takedowns. Since that probably won't happen overnight, though, fill your time with all the upcoming premieres across linear TV and streaming with our Winter and Spring premiere schedule.

The death of Kobe Bryant is still a bit hard for many people to comprehend. One of the most popular sports stars of all-time was here one minute, and then he wasn't, and so many people were fans that they're still dealing with the loss. One of those people who found herself having trouble with the whole idea of Kobe Bryant being gone was Billie Eilish, who performed for the In Memoriam segment of last night's Oscar telecast.

Kobe Bryant co-produced the Oscar winning animated short Dear Basketball in 2018, and so, was part of the Academy as much as any of the other names, big and small, that were celebrated last night. His was the first name we saw during the tribute, and Billie Elish told ET that every time she saw him while rehearsing her song, a cover of the Beatles tune "Yesterday," she was shocked by his passing all over again. According to Eilish...

Billie Eilish's comments are probably echoed by fans all over the world. It only been two weeks since Bryant, his daughter, and seven others died in the helicopter crash in Southern California. While that might be long enough for many to move on from a celebrity death, it does seem that Kobe Bryant's death feels different for a lot of people. Billie Elish had plenty of opportunity to come to terms with it, seeing his picture as part of rehearsing for the tribute, and yet, even with that it seems the whole thing was still shocking.

Of course, sometimes it doesn't matter how old you are, death is still shocking. While Kobe Bryant was the first name listed during the Oscars' In Memoriam tribute, the last name was Kirk Douglas who only passed away five days ago. He was 103, but when you get to be that age, I think we all just assume you're probably immortal.

You can check out the entire Oscar tribute to those that are no longer with us in the video below.

There are always far too many talents listed in this tribute every year. Many of them are names that the general public doesn't know, but they're no less important to the history of cinema, something that the Oscars are designed to celebrate. While this is a tribute that is sadly needed every year, it's always a welcome opportunity to give all those people who are now gone one final goodbye, as the industry is a darker place without them.

In the wake of Kobe Bryant’s death, CBS This Morning host Gayle King conducted an interview with former WNBA star Lisa Leslie to discuss the late basketball player’s legacy. After CBS shared a clip from the interview, King received backlash for asking Leslie about a past rape charge filed against Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash on January 26. However, a “mortified” King took to social media to defend herself and to offer further context surrounding her interview with Leslie.

During a sit-down interview to discuss the late Kobe Bryant’s life and career with Lisa Leslie, Gayle King brought up the sexual assault allegations brought against Bryant in 2003. The late basketball player was charged by a then 19-year-old woman with raping her in a hotel room. The case was dropped in 2004.

In the interview excerpt, Gayle King asked Lisa Leslie about the case, wondering if it “complicated” Bryant’s legacy. Leslie didn’t think Kobe Bryant would “violate a woman or be aggressive in that way.” King pressed on, telling Leslie that “as his friend, you wouldn’t see it.” In two videos posted to Twitter, the CBS This Morning host called out CBS for the out-of-context video, claiming there was more to the conversation that didn’t make the cut. Here’s what she said:

Gayle King continued, saying that the interview was “wide-ranging” and that the court case did come up and, as a “friend who knew him well,” King wanted Lisa Leslie’s perspective on the matter. King also stated that she asked several follow-up questions to reaffirm Leslie’s position on the matter, which wasn’t seen in the interview excerpt. In her words:

In a second video posted to Twitter, Gayle King shared her reaction to the interview and CBS’ handling of the clip’s release without context and that she wanted people to hear from her directly instead of watching her read a “prepared remark.” Here were here some of her final thoughts on the matter:

The interview that aired with Lisa Leslie was five and a half minutes long. Gayle King also added that she herself had interacted with Kobe Bryant on several occasions and that the last thing she wanted to do was “disparage him at this particular time” and that she hopes people “understand that.” You can watch her interview with Leslie below.

Gayle King's response to CBS airing the clip without context has already received a lot of attention on social media, which is unsurprising considering the interest in Kobe Bryant's legacy in the wake of his tragic death. Will CBS change how it handles footage and provide specific context as a general rule in the future?

Only time will tell, but a CBS News spokesperson weighed in via a statement to TVLine:

Hopefully the way CBS News addresses the internal process and made the changes satisfies Gayle King. She was clearly upset at the way her interview was portrayed; perhaps something as simple as greater context will provide the fix that will accurately represent how the conversation actually happened.

For now, you can catch Gayle King on CBS This Morning, airing weekdays on CBS. For some more viewing options now and in the not-too-distant future, take a look at our 2020 winter and spring premiere schedule.

Four days have passed since the shocking and tragic death of Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and the seven other passengers on board that ill-fated helicopter. In the interim, many facts and accident-related details were revealed that hadn't been available when news outlets first jumped on reports about the crash. One such reporter who could have certainly used fast and reliable data that day was ABC News' now-suspended Matt Gutman.

On Wednesday, January 30, ABC News made the decision to suspend its Chief National Correspondent Matt Gutman over the inaccuracies he voiced live on the air in the aftermath of the accident. When in the midst of reporting on the fatalities involved in the crash, Gutman erroneously stated it was believed that all four daughters of Kobe and Vanessa Bryant were killed aboard the crashed helicopter. The news eventually surfaced that it was only one of their daughters, 13-year-old Gianna, was involved, while the others were nowhere near the scene.

In a later report, Matt Gutman recanted his earlier claim and apologized, and also took to social media to be up front about his hastily spread disinformation. The damage had been done, however, and after ABC News' higher-ups took the time to consider the matter, Gutman's suspension was announced on Wednesday, reported the Los Angeles Times.

No further details were given about Matt Gutman's suspension, in terms of how long it will last and what it entails. Unless ABC News offers up more info in the near future, or if Gutman himself divulges anything online, the correspondent's next on-air report may well be viewers' first indication that the suspension has lifted.

ABC News released a statement after Matt Gutman's suspension was made public:

With his statement, Matt Gutman largely echoed those points and the ones he'd previously shared in his online and on-air apology. In his words:

Matt Gutman's erroneous claim was a particularly brutal one for people to hear at a point when confirmed information was difficult to discern from the usual social media static that follows deadly tragedies like this. As well, it further affirmed the danger in announcing details to TV audiences before they've had a chance to be vetted for accuracy. It's perhaps not the worst misinformation shared by a news reporter, but that makes it no less harmful.

You can check out his apologetic tweet below.

To be sure, Gutman hasn't been the only one taking flak for jumping the gun with reports of Kobe Bryant's helicopter crash. The tabloid mega-site TMZ was the first outlet to spread the news after the crash, and it soon took the brunt of many people's frustration – including several L.A. County police officers – for reportedly going live with its story before the authorities had the time to contact all the family members of the deceased. On Tuesday, Grey's Anatomy star Ellen Pompeo went on a Twitter tirade against TMZ and its founder Harvey Levin, calling for action to be taken against the site's controversial reporting methods.

Other reports on the deadly crash were marred for other reasons. For instance, one MSNBC reporter was called out by viewers for reportedly uttering a racial epithet during her report, though she has defended herself by saying it was a far more innocent slip of the tongue. (She combined the NBA team names of the "Lakers" and "Knicks" to get "Nakers," by her account.)

Elsewhere, on the BBC, the report on Kobe Bryant's death was coupled with footage not of the Oscar-winning basketball legend, but of current L.A. Lakers star LeBron James, who had just passed Bryant to become the NBA's third highest scorer of all time. To be expected, the organization was called out for racism and more.

Planters, meanwhile, chose to back down from its marketing campaign surrounding the death of advertising icon Mr. Peanut, with the company having dropped a ton of money on a primely timed Super Bowl ad and other lighthearted fare. However, Super Bowl fans can still expect to see the ad airing at some point, as well as a Kobe Bryant-focused tribute of some kind.

Beloved basketball legend Kobe Bryant died on January 26 after a helicopter crash that also resulted in the deaths of his 13-year-old daughter and seven others, shocking fans and admirers everywhere. The tragedy happened less than a week after Planters debuted its super weird commercial that kills off Mr. Peanut when he sacrifices his life after a car crash. Now, in the wake of Bryant's death, Planters plans on pausing the promotion featuring Mr. Peanut's death, but that doesn't mean the end of the campaign.

According to a Planters spokesperson (via Adweek), the company has "paused all campaign activities, including paid media, and will evaluate next steps through a lens of sensitivity to those impacted by this tragedy." This pause reportedly applies to the social media and online aspects of the campaign ahead of the Super Bowl on February 2, such as Twitter and YouTube. The commercial scheduled to air during the Super Bowl will still air and feature Mr. Peanut's funeral.

The Planters campaign was an immediate hit when the commercial featuring Mr. Peanut's death debuted, with #RIPeanut trending on social media and accounts ranging from the Wienermobile to Budweiser to even PETA expressing condolences for the death of Mr. Peanut. Planters announced that Mr. Peanut's funeral would air "during the third quarter of the Super Bowl to celebrate his life."

Killing off Mr. Peanut via Nutmobile crash when the nutty mascot dropped to his doom to save Matt Walsh and Wesley Snipes was a bold move that was immediately successful in generating buzz (and likely revenue) for Planters. Unfortunately, it proved to be a poorly-timed campaign due to Kobe Bryant's death.

The content of the funeral ad should be interesting to see, as it was likely one of the most highly anticipated of the Super Bowl broadcast before the tragedy. Now, it may be seen in a different light. Planters pausing its advertising efforts with the death of Mr. Peanut is just one of many ways that Kobe Bryant's death has been honored in the wake of his passing. Social media has seen an outpouring of both grief and tributes to Bryant, his daughter, and the others on board the helicopter.

Unfortunately, one tribute to Kobe Bryant didn't go off without a hitch. A BBC segment honoring the basketball legend actually showed footage of LeBron James after James' move to Bryant's longtime NBA team, the Los Angeles Lakers. The footage quite clearly showed James' name on the back of his jersey, prompting BBC News Editor Paul Royall to issue an apology via Twitter for "this human error."

More touching were the comments of John Williams and Disney animator Glen Keane, who worked with Kobe Bryant on the short Dear Basketball, which won an Academy Award in 2018. Keane shared that working with Bryant was "one of the high points" of his career, while John Williams stated that Bryant was "an inspiration to countless millions."

Only time will tell how Kobe Bryant fans react to the airing of the Mr. Peanut funeral ad during the Super Bowl, after Planters made the decision to pause its other ad efforts. You can catch the commercial during the third quarter of Super Bowl LIV between the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, February 2 on Fox.

Yesterday was a bad day. It’s still hard to sit down and type out the next sentence, which is: Yesterday, the world lost nine people in a helicopter crash, two of them being retired basketball icon Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna, also an avid basketball player and fan. More details are breaking about the fatal accident, but it all boils down to those facts and the people who were affected in their wake. People like John Williams and Disney animator Glen Keane, who worked with Kobe on his Oscar-winning short Dear Basketball.

The animator and famous composer recently spoke to the NY Times in the wake of Kobe Bryant’s death, reminiscing about 2017, when the trio worked on the Oscar-winning animated film Dear Basketball. For the production, Keane spent time working with Kobe to feel out the way he moved on the court to creation animation that flowed and moved. He said of their time together:

It was Kobe Bryant who actually approached Glen Keane to animate Dear Basketball. Bryant had seen Duet, an animated short directed by Keane that had been released in 2014. Bryant had written a poem about ending his career that later became Dear Basketball, an animated nod to the sport that he loved and that had defined his life and life’s ambition up to that point.

Later, John Williams came on board the project thanks to Kobe Bryant convincing him as well. His daughters were a big fan of “Hedwigs’ Theme” from Harry Potter, which Williams scored, and Bryant had reached out to the composer before ever asking him on board for Dear Basketball. In a statement, John Williams said about their friendship, built through that working relationship and that deep appreciation of music, that he had gotten a greater understanding of who Kobe was as a person.

If you’ve never seen the short, you can watch the trailer below, which follows young Kobe and his early dreams, his career and finally his body breaking down before he ultimately retired from the game at the end of the 2016 season. The short was released in 2017 and is an expression of all of the emotions and change Kobe experienced in that time.

If you’ve ever seen the animated short, it is a therapeutic watch and told from Kobe Bryant’s point of view. It’s a very human movie to watch, with emotive hand-drawn lines and a story that anyone, even those of us who haven’t made sports our greatest ambition, can understand. Toward its end, Bryant admits it's time to let the sport go, noting,

Dear Basketball ultimately won an Oscar as well as a Sports Emmy Award and an Annie Award and will live on in the wake of Kobe Bryant, a behemoth who, though not perfect, was a great example of striving and reaching for the utmost heights. He will be missed.

This past weekend rocked the worlds of sport, entertainment and pop culture, as former NBA great Kobe Bryant and eight others were killed in a horrific helicopter crash in the mountains in Calabasas, California. To be expected, news outlets everywhere were covering the news updates as they came from local authorities, and because the fatal accident was so unexpected, many of those outlets were scrambling to pull segments together. Unfortunately, the BBC didn't utilize the most stringent editing process, and erroneously used footage of current NBA superstar LeBron James instead of Bryant.

You can check out a clip from the news segment below, in which an image of Kobe Bryant and his daughter is followed by footage of LeBron James as part of the Los Angeles Lakers.

As evidenced by the tweet above, quite a few people out there were more than a little irate at the BBC for such a major foul-up involving two of the most popular and celebrated basketball players on the planet. (To say nothing of the fact that LeBron James only got traded to the Lakers in 2018, two years after Kobe Bryant retired from the sport.) Even if the person editing the video segment had never seen either Bryant or James' faces before, the name on the back of the jersey should have been a clue.

BBC News Editor Paul Royall took to Twitter after the segment aired to issue an apology for having shown audiences the wrong footage during the broadcast.

That news segment also ended with the on-air newsreader Reeta Chakrabarti offering up a very similar-sounding apology:

Both Paul Royall and Reeta Chakrabarti refer to the LeBron James video clips as "pictures," too, which isn't exactly correct. Clearly it wasn't the biggest flub of the day, however.

Twitter was awash with various criticisms aimed at BBC News, with latent racism being a common theme across many tweets. Several users brought up other recent mistakes that BBC journalists have made on the air, and the following reply to Paul Royall sums up what a lot of people were feeling. (And does so in a safe-for-work way.)

The BBC wasn't the only news network dealing with racially fueled blowback over a Kobe Bryant report. Elsewhere, at MSNBC, anchor Alison Morris was reporting on the Oscar-winning athlete's death during a live report and got her tongue tied while saying "Los Angeles Lakers."

Many viewers believed that Morris uttered a racial slur during the segment, calling them the "Los Angeles N-----s," but the anchor took to Twitter to explain that she accidentally combined the names of the Knicks and the Lakers and said "Nakers," though others weren't weren't exactly embracing that excuse.

From Steve Harvey's infamous Miss Universe blunder to John Travolta's epic mangling of Idina Menzel's name, people have been making embarrassing misidentifications during live TV broadcasts for years. However, getting a name wrong in a split-second (so long as it isn't an accidental racial epithet) is an entirely different error than airing several seconds of the wrong footage.

We at CinemaBlend send our thoughts and condolences to the family and friends of Kobe Bryant in their time of mourning.

NBA legend Kobe Bryant has reportedly passed away in a helicopter crash alongside his daughter GiGi, who was just 13, and several other passengers. Details on the specifics are still emerging, but the tragedy has been confirmed by multiple outlets. He was just 41 years old.

The Lakers legend was reportedly flying in a helicopter along with his daughter and the other passengers early this morning (UPDATE: CNN is reporting that there were seven others aboard the helicopter). They were reportedly headed to a basketball practice at his Mamba Academy in Thousand Oaks when the vehicle crashed and caught on fire. Everyone on board reportedly died. According to TMZ, nearby witnesses heard the engine sputtering immediately prior to the crash. Authorities are actively investigating, and given the high profile nature of the case, we should start to hear more information quickly. He's survived by his wife Vanessa and his three other children.

Bryant's life, of course, will always be first remembered for his incredible contributions to the NBA. Drafted straight out of high school, the future Hall of Famer made an immediate impact with the Los Angeles Lakers. Alongside Shaquille O'Neal and later Pau Gasol, he won 5 NBA titles, two of which saw him voted the Most Valuable Player of the finals. He was also selected to 18 All-Star Games, 11 All-NBA First Teams and was voted the Most Valuable Player of the entire league in 2008. He's almost certainly one of the 10 to 15 or greatest players in the history of the NBA and depending on who you ask, he may be a lot higher than that.

All of his accomplishments on the hardwood will no doubt be covered extensively elsewhere. Here, it's worth discussing his relationship to movies. Bryant was long a vocal admirer of movies and cultivated a cultured image, which fit in well with Los Angeles. He almost played the Kevin Garnett role in Uncut Gems, and his wonderful short film Dear Basketball won an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. Based off a letter he wrote to the Player's Tribune announcing his retirement from basketball back in 2015, the film blends a visually interesting, almost unfinished animation style with some touching narration from Bryant. You can watch the version that was played during a special event at Staples Center below...

The thing that's so wonderful about Dear Basketball is how it conveys both dedication and passion. Kobe Bryant was by all accounts an almost fanatical worker. His training routines were widely discussed and admired during his career, and toward the end, he even used a helicopter to get back and forth from his home in Newport Beach to Staples Center and the team's other training facilities in order to stay out of LA's traffic. In fact, over the past several years of his career, he started using the helicopter so much it was considered by many to be his preferred method of travel.

For much of Kobe Bryant's career, his life off the basketball floor made headlines as well. His relationship with wife Vanessa was often a source of news stories, as was his sometimes unusual relationship with his parents. He was accused of sexual assault in 2003 and vehemently denied the allegations during a public press conference, arguing the encounter was consensual. The charges were later dropped, but many considered it the real reason he was kept out of The Academy after winning his Oscar in 2018, although a lack of experience was officially given. In recent years, he started a venture capital firm called Bryant-Stibel alongside Jeff Stibel. Together, they invested in a variety of companies including Legal Zoom, The Players Tribune, Epic Games and Alibaba.

Kobe Bryant was long considered one of the great students and teachers of the game. He cared deeply about the history of basketball and its longterm growth. He seemed to really care about his legacy and even the legacies of others around him. As such, it's only fitting that one of his last public comments and his final tweet was congratulating LeBron James for passing him on the all-time scoring list. Bryant will forever be remembered each time someone approaches one of his records. Here's to hoping each time it happens, people remember his fanatical drive to win, his competitive spirit and also the way he thought deeply about the world around him.

Not long after news of the tragedy broke, the Houston Rockets and Denver Nuggets game began with a touching tribute to Bryant and a moment of silence. You can watch it below...

Our thoughts go out to Bryant's surviving family members, his friends, his former teammates and all the fans who loved him. He was a true original and no one will ever be able to replace what he brought to the game.