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Los Angeles, fans remember Kobe Bryant one year after deadly crash

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Rob Woollard, Agence France-Presse

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/reuters/01/27/kobe.jpg"/><figcaption>Caesar Mendoza takes a snapshot of a mural of Kobe Bryant in an alley near Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles. Bryant and his daughter Gianna and seven other persons died in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26, 2020. <em>Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY Sports/Reuters</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>LOS ANGELES -- Basketball fans gathered across Los Angeles on Tuesday to remember Kobe Bryant, one year to the day after the former NBA superstar perished in a helicopter crash with daughter Gianna and seven others.</p><p>Fans laid flowers and Los Angeles Lakers memorabilia at a makeshift memorial outside the Staples Center, the arena where Bryant became a city icon during a two-decade playing career.</p><p>Bryant, 41, his daughter and fellow passengers died on January 26 last year when the helicopter they were travelling in slammed into a hillside in Calabasas in foggy conditions.</p><p>In a post on Instagram, Bryant&#x27;s widow Vanessa published a letter she had received from one of her daughter&#x27;s best friends which read in part: &quot;You have probably heard this, but if I ever become a mom, I hope my daughter turns out exactly as yours did.&quot;</p><p>Vanessa Bryant added in the post: &quot;I miss my baby girl and Kob-Kob so much, too. I will never understand why/how this tragedy could&#x27;ve happened to such beautiful, kind and amazing human beings. It still doesn&#x27;t seem real.&quot;</p><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CKf7QLmDXDo/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13" style="background:#FFF;border:0;border-radius:3px;box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15);margin:1px;max-width:540px;min-width:326px;padding:0;width:calc(100% - 2px)"><div style="padding:16px"><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:row;align-items:center"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;flex-grow:0;height:40px;margin-right:14px;width:40px"> </div><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:column;flex-grow:1;justify-content:center"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;margin-bottom:6px;width:100px"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;width:60px"> </div></div></div><div style="padding:19% 0"> </div><div 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style="background-color:#F4F4F4;height:12.5px;transform:rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px);width:12.5px;flex-grow:0;margin-right:14px;margin-left:2px"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;height:12.5px;width:12.5px;transform:translateX(9px) translateY(-18px)"> </div></div><div style="margin-left:8px"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;flex-grow:0;height:20px;width:20px"> </div><div style="width:0;height:0;border-top:2px solid transparent;border-left:6px solid #f4f4f4;border-bottom:2px solid transparent;transform:translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)"> </div></div><div style="margin-left:auto"><div style="width:0px;border-top:8px solid #F4F4F4;border-right:8px solid transparent;transform:translateY(16px)"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;flex-grow:0;height:12px;width:16px;transform:translateY(-4px)"> </div><div style="width:0;height:0;border-top:8px solid #F4F4F4;border-left:8px solid transparent;transform:translateY(-4px) translateX(8px)"> </div></div></div><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:column;flex-grow:1;justify-content:center;margin-bottom:24px"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;margin-bottom:6px;width:224px"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;width:144px"> </div></div><div style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:17px;margin-bottom:0;margin-top:8px;overflow:hidden;padding:8px 0 7px;text-align:center;text-overflow:ellipsis;white-space:nowrap"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CKf7QLmDXDo/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;line-height:17px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">A post shared by Vanessa Bryant 🦋 (@vanessabryant)</a></div></div></blockquote><script async="" src="http://www.instagram.com/embed.js" type="text/javascript"></script><p>Bryant&#x27;s former Lakers team-mate Pau Gasol was among those who tweeted their messages of remembrance.</p><div><strong>- &#x27;I miss you hermano&#x27; -</strong></div><p>&quot;I miss you, hermano... not a day goes by that you are not present in what I do,&quot; the Spanish international wrote.</p><p>&quot;Your spirit, your drive, your ambition, your love... continues to shine in my life and in many others. ... I hope you and Gigi are smiling down seeing how strong, sweet and amazing your girls are.&quot;</p><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CKhNGh9A8_T/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13" style="background:#FFF;border:0;border-radius:3px;box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15);margin:1px;max-width:540px;min-width:326px;padding:0;width:calc(100% - 2px)"><div style="padding:16px"><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:row;align-items:center"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;flex-grow:0;height:40px;margin-right:14px;width:40px"> </div><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:column;flex-grow:1;justify-content:center"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;margin-bottom:6px;width:100px"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;width:60px"> </div></div></div><div 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</div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;height:12.5px;transform:rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px);width:12.5px;flex-grow:0;margin-right:14px;margin-left:2px"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;height:12.5px;width:12.5px;transform:translateX(9px) translateY(-18px)"> </div></div><div style="margin-left:8px"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;flex-grow:0;height:20px;width:20px"> </div><div style="width:0;height:0;border-top:2px solid transparent;border-left:6px solid #f4f4f4;border-bottom:2px solid transparent;transform:translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)"> </div></div><div style="margin-left:auto"><div style="width:0px;border-top:8px solid #F4F4F4;border-right:8px solid transparent;transform:translateY(16px)"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;flex-grow:0;height:12px;width:16px;transform:translateY(-4px)"> </div><div style="width:0;height:0;border-top:8px solid #F4F4F4;border-left:8px solid transparent;transform:translateY(-4px) translateX(8px)"> </div></div></div><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:column;flex-grow:1;justify-content:center;margin-bottom:24px"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;margin-bottom:6px;width:224px"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;width:144px"> </div></div><div style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:17px;margin-bottom:0;margin-top:8px;overflow:hidden;padding:8px 0 7px;text-align:center;text-overflow:ellipsis;white-space:nowrap"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CKhNGh9A8_T/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;line-height:17px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">A post shared by Pau (@paugasol)</a></div></div></blockquote><script async="" src="http://www.instagram.com/embed.js" type="text/javascript"></script><p>Lakers legend Earvin &quot;Magic&quot; Johnson simply posted a picture of himself in Lakers uniform alongside Bryant.</p><p>&quot;Kobe will always be my Lakers brother for life,&quot; Johnson wrote.</p><p>The Lakers meanwhile posted a black and white photograph of Bryant planting an affectionate kiss on his daughter&#x27;s head, with a caption: &quot;Family is forever.&quot;</p><p>Other Los Angeles sporting franchises also paid tribute. The Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team posted a photo of the pitching mound at Dodger Stadium emblazoned with Bryant&#x27;s &quot;24&quot; jersey number in Lakers colours.</p><p>The Los Angeles Galaxy Major League Soccer team also posted a pitcher of Bryant and his daughter, with a caption reflecting their nicknames: &quot;Mamba &amp; Mambacita forever.</p><p>Bryant won five championships with the Lakers during his career before finally retiring in 2016.</p><div><strong>- Street-art memorials -</strong></div><p>Since his death, dozens of large-scale murals have appeared on walls throughout Los Angeles.</p><p>An emotional 2020 season for the Lakers culminated with LeBron James leading the team to their first NBA championship in 10 years last October.</p><p>The team are not playing on Tuesday, and not planning a formal tribute to Bryant when they play in Philadelphia.</p><p>Lakers star James said last weekend he was still struggling to come to terms with his close friend&#x27;s death.</p><p>&quot;Man, it&#x27;s a saying that says, &#x27;Time heals all,&#x27;&quot; James said. &quot;And as devastating and as tragic as it was and still is to all of us involved with it, only time (will help). And it takes time.</p><p>&quot;Everyone has their own grieving process. Everyone understands that everyone individually is different. Everyone is going to grieve differently.</p><p>&quot;All you can do as a friend or a loved one or anyone in our brotherhood or our familyhood that we have here in the Lakers organization is to put an arm around someone when they need it.&quot;</p><p>The National Transportation Safety Board meanwhile is due to announce the results of its investigation into the deadly crash on February 9.</p><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Q2XKT420KAA?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div>

<p>Basketball fans gathered across Los Angeles on Tuesday to remember Kobe Bryant, one year to the day after the former NBA superstar perished in a helicopter crash.</p>

Basketball fans gathered across Los Angeles on Tuesday to remember Kobe Bryant, one year to the day after the former NBA superstar perished in a helicopter crash.

Los Angeles, fans remember Kobe Bryant one year after deadly crash

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Los Angeles, fans remember Kobe Bryant one year after deadly crash

Rob Woollard,

Agence France-Presse

Published Jan 27, 2021 08:51 AM PHT

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Gigi Bryant

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