Kobe Bryant Killed In Helicopter Crash

CNN and other news sources report basketball legend Kobe Bryant, 41, died early today in Los Angeles, California in a helicopter crash.

 

According to TMZ, Kobes 13 year old daughter Gianna Maria Onore, aka GiGi, was also on board the helicopter and died in the crash.

TMZ is  told they were on their way to the Mamba Academy for a basketball practice when the crash occurred. The Academy is in nearby Thousand Oaks.

 

TMZ reported Bryant was aboard a helicopter that crashed in Calabasas, California.

Five people were killed the crash on a hillside in Calabasas, the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department said. There were no survivors, the Los Angeles County Fire Department said.

The sheriffs department received reports of the downed aircraft just after 1 p.m. ET (10 a.m PT), officials said in a tweet.

Flames have been extinguished, the department said.

Calabasas is about 30 miles west of Los Angeles.

 

 

Bryant was drafted to the NBA out of high school in 1996 and spent his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers, winning five NBA championships. He was awarded NBA MVP in 2008 and NBA Finals MVP in 2009 and 2010.

Bryant won gold medals as a member of the U.S. mens basketball team in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing and the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.