The basketball world mourns Joe Bryant, Kobe Bryant’s father, who died at 69. A former player for the 76ers, Clippers, and Rockets, he also coached for decades in the US, Japan, and Thailand. His death follows the tragic loss of Kobe and his granddaughter Gianna in a helicopter crash. Joe recently suffered a massive stroke, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
In the first round of the 1975 NBA draft, Joe was chosen by the Golden State Warriors; however, a few months later, the team sold his rights to Philadelphia.
The forward played for his home team for four seasons and led the 76ers to the 1977 NBA Finals.
Later on, he relocated to Europe and began playing for teams in France and Italy. Bryant started as a coach for the girls’ basketball team at the small school outside Philadelphia known as Akiba Hebrew Academy.
But he was soon back on the road, playing for teams in Boston, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Bangkok, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles.
According to the Inquirer, Joe Bryant’s relationship with his son Kobe became strained as Kobe built his NBA career. In 2016, Kobe revealed he hadn’t spoken to his parents in almost three years after they tried to auction his high school memorabilia without his consent. Kobe and his daughter Gianna died with seven others in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California, in January 2020. They were traveling to Bryant’s Mamba Basketball Academy.
