R.I.P Kobe Bryant

LuckyGent88

Sorry to be the one to put this in but multiple reports that Kobe Bryant has died in a helicopter crash.

Devastating if true. Shocking. ****ing hell

GoldFour4

Kobe Bryant killed in a helicopter crash this morning. Shocking, an absolute legend of the game.

walshb

malistheman wrote: »

Kobe Bryant killed in a helicopter crash this morning. Shocking, an absolute legend of the game.

Shocking....one of the greatest of all times!

Gregk961

What a shock. I'll be reliving some of his best games for the forseable future.

A sudden end for one of the biggest icons of the 00's. Seemingly had a lot more to offer the world than just basketball either. Some of his work post retirement was very interesting.

Itssoeasy

I just got an alert from sky news that is ****ing shocking. Kobe Bryant was killed in a helicopter crash in California.

Gwynplaine

Shocking. RIP

RobertKK

Not the news one expects, very sad news.

Carcharodon

Genuinely in shock, such a polarizing figure on and off the court, one of the greatest to ever do it.
So sad, 4 kids left behind and had a lot more to offer the game.
See him play live a few times, he use to absolutely destroy the Warriors back in the day.
RIP Black Mamba

Osmosis Jones

****, really hope this isn't true

https://twitter.com/conservmillen/status/1221525570002882562?s=20

Coneygree

I cannot believe it, what horrible news. He had such a young and thriving family and had a newborn not too long ago. He seemed to be enjoying retirement and kept himself busy and motivated as you'd expect from Kobe. Just terrible news, I don't think I've ever felt this shook from a celebrity death. He had just paid tribute to LeBron last night and all.

D2D

I'm in absolute shock. Unbelievably sad news

LuckyGent88

From Woj on twitter; Sources: Kobe Bryant was on his way to a travel basketball game with his daughter Gianna when the helicopter crashed. Those aboard the helicopter also included another player and parent.


That’s what I feared when I heard the news that it was his whole family. Looks like just his daughter Gianna. What an absolute tragedy

Carcharodon

Spurs and raptors both just took 24sec violations in respect for him, crazy how these things happen, so sad, at least he lived such a full life up until his death, he accomplished more in 41 years than I would in 400 years

generalgerry

His poor wife. Both husband and daughter.

Itssoeasy

That video from a couple of weeks ago of him and his daughter watching a game is even sadder now.

Itssoeasy

Jesus I’m listening to ESPN Los Angeles and doc rivers is in bits. Oh god.

JP Liz V1

LuckyGent88 wrote: »

From Woj on twitter; Sources: Kobe Bryant was on his way to a travel basketball game with his daughter Gianna when the helicopter crashed. Those aboard the helicopter also included another player and parent.


That’s what I feared when I heard the news that it was his whole family. Looks like just his daughter Gianna. What an absolute tragedy

RIP All

ionadnapokot

Tiger talking about Kobe at the end of his round just there.
Looked a bit shook.

K.O.Kiki

Only just realised he was due for the HOF this year so we won't see that speech, either.
I'm just in shock.

dublinman1990

Former Lakers player Michael Cooper is speaking to Wolf Blitzer on CNN right now. He is sounding quite emotional in his interview.

LuckyLloyd

This is a truly shocking event, and particularly sad given his daughter was in the helicopter with him. He leaves behind a wife and other daughters, and you can only imagine what they’re going through.

It must be said however: had Kobe’s rape case played out more recently I don’t think he would have rehabilitated his reputation and personality as easily. He was far from a perfect character though it seemed he may have genuinely learned from the whole thing to the benefit of his family in the long run.

As a competitor, he was immense with an ability to become transcendent in the clutch. He was also a poor teammate who took as much from the Lakers in the end as he had provided.

Great people are flawed and contain contradictions. He should be remembered but not beatified.

walshb

9 people now confirmed as dead in this tragedy....

xgronkjabv6pcl

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

It must be said however: had Kobe’s rape case played out more recently I don’t think he would have rehabilitated his reputation and personality as easily. He was far from a perfect character though it seemed he may have genuinely learned from the whole thing to the benefit of his family in the long run.

Great people are flawed and contain contradictions. He should be remembered but not beatified.

Quite a lot of that feels a tad unnecessary to me and not representative of how he has been portrayed since the tragedy struck. Paraphrasing but effectively to say that "it must be said that his rape case would play out differently now" is rather untrue, I don't understand why that must be said at all.

I don't think people/media have been bestowing undue adulation upon him nor dismissive of his wrongdoings. He was a polarising character and some of his behaviour was questionable but that has not been forgotten.
The coverage has centred upon exactly what an athlete should be remembered for; their athletic ability and the joy people took from their performances.

LuckyLloyd

Prince Uneven Polygamist wrote: »

Paraphrasing but effectively to say that "it must be said that his rape case would play out differently now" is rather untrue, I don't understand why that must be said at all.

I didn’t say that or anything like the sort: I offered no opinion on whether the case itself would have been different. The reaction and negative media to it would have been though. There would have been huge pressure for him not to be allowed to resume his career if the same evidence hit the public domain in 2018 as opposed to 2003.

Paddy Jackson was not guilty but you see how that played out.

I don't think people/media have been bestowing undue adulation upon him nor dismissive of his wrongdoings. He was a polarising character and some of his behaviour was questionable but that has not been forgotten.
The coverage has centred upon exactly what an athlete should be remembered for; their athletic ability and the joy people took from their performances.

His polarising elements are not really being discussed anywhere that I can see. The coverage is overwhelmingly positive and therefore is unrepresentative of the coverage he received throughout his career.

v3ttel

Totally shocked. One of the best to ever do it.

He inspired a generation to play basketball and helped others to understand the value of hard work. His mentality was second to none. 5 rings says it all. A mentor to so many.

Feel for his family & all the other families involved. RIP.

xgronkjabv6pcl

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

I didn’t say that or anything like the sort: I offered no opinion on whether the case itself would have been different. The reaction and negative media to it would have been though. There would have been huge pressure for him not to be allowed to resume his career if the same evidence hit the public domain in 2018 as opposed to 2003.

I suspect you have somewhat misinterpreted me here. You said "it must be said" and in turn proceeded to question Kobe's ability to repair his reputation in the current era vs 2003. My qualm is not really with your opinion of the result in this epoch or any other, my issue is the necessity to raise it as this point.

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

His polarising elements are not really being discussed anywhere that I can see. The coverage is overwhelmingly positive and therefore is unrepresentative of the coverage he received throughout his career.

Of course there's a an asymmetry around the discussion points, he died in a helicopter crash with his daughter and other tragic victims yesterday. He was never found guilty of any wrongdoing and went on to have a legendary career as one of the most adored sporting icons of his generation.

Evidently in order to raise the points regarding his shortcomings, polarising demeanor etc you must feel that they deserve greater coverage to this point. I suspect almost nobody would agree with that. The coverage of his career until this tragedy has been overwhelmingly positive so you're completely wrong on that point, clearly in order to attain the outpouring that he has received, he would need to have obtained overwhelmingly positive responses to this point by his peers and fans.

Your raising of those points feel unnecessary and add nothing to the discussion imo and I'd find it very surprising if you found many people who would question the distribution of the sentiment covered by media thus far as unfairly skewed to the positive.

K.O.Kiki

Ah, feck lads.
It's raining.

Top Dog

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

It must be said however:

No, it mustn't.



The man's body may not yet have even been recovered from the wreckage, have a little respect for him and the rest of the victims of this tragic event. 2 kids have become orphans losing both their parents & sister, another 3 children have lost their mother, while 3 more have lost their father (and thats only the ones I know about).


At least wait till emotions are a little less raw if you must bring something like that up. :rolleyes:

xgronkjabv6pcl

I would have no issue talking about Kobe's shortcomings at all but I just find the assertion that the adulation he has received between when the tragedy struck and now is not representative of how he is perceived is pretty unfounded.

Obviously in tragic circumstances such as these, most will be remembered for their better qualities(unless in extreme circumstances) so raising a point regarding that inevitable asymmetry is moot because effectively it is an innate human response irrespective of stature.

TBH, I don't really think LL was doing that, what I believe he was saying was even controlling for the inevitable asymmetric outpouring upon his passing that the adoration he has received was still over and above what was to be expected given his shortcomings, this is what I believe is unfounded.

Not only do I think it's unfounded, I think that it is unnecessary to raise because he was never convicted of any wrongdoing nor was the questions regarding his character on the court particularly malignant so I don't feel it's something that warrants discussion at all.

splinter65

What do we know about this incident.
A girl alleged she was sexually assaulted. The accused man said there was a sexual encounter that was consensual. A financial settlement was reached to the satisfaction of both parties.
What exactly is there to discuss?!

xgronkjabv6pcl

splinter65 wrote: »

What do we know about this incident.
A girl alleged she was sexually assaulted. The accused man said there was a sexual encounter that was consensual. A financial settlement was reached to the satisfaction of both parties.
What exactly is there to discuss?!

LL believes that in the current era vs 2003, the level of ridicule and negative media attention that befell Paddy Jackson for example may have also happened Kobe.

This negative media attention would have led to an inability to attain that heights that he subsequently reached is about the jist of the rationale for discussion I believe.

Hoboo

Prince Uneven Polygamist wrote: »

LL believes that in the current era vs 2003, the level of ridicule and negative media attention that befell Paddy Jackson for example may have also happened Kobe.

This negative media attention would have led to an inability to attain that heights that he subsequently reached is about the jist of the rationale for discussion I believe.

I remember the furore in 2003 moreso than Paddy Jackson. It was massive. To a non basketball player/fan living outside the states it probably went unnoticed. Leave him at it.

K.O.Kiki

Also Dom2k, man...

Gregk961

One huge takeaway from this whole thing has been how absolutely dreadful news reporting(particularly online) has become. BBCs fvck up aside, I've seen dozens of articles of absolute rubbish ranging from clickbait to just flat out misinformation.

Is it just me or has reporting, sport or otherwise, completely nosedived in the last 10 year's? The crossover of social media and news has been an absolute disaster. It's lead to some dangerously misinformed/misled people.

Most of my colleagues know I have a background in basketball so have been talking to me about Kobe over lunch etc and the amount of incorrect information I've had fed back to me has been unbelievable.

xgronkjabv6pcl

Gregk961 wrote: »

One huge takeaway from this whole thing has been how absolutely dreadful news reporting(particularly online) has become. BBCs fvck up aside, I've seen dozens of articles of absolute rubbish ranging from clickbait to just flat out misinformation.

Is it just me or has reporting, sport or otherwise, completely nosedived in the last 10 year's? The crossover of social media and news has been an absolute disaster. It's lead to some dangerously misinformed/misled people.

Most of my colleagues know I have a background in basketball so have been talking to me about Kobe over lunch etc and the amount of incorrect information I've had fed back to me has been unbelievable.

There's been quite a bit of research around sentiment type analysis in media generally and the research shows it has become more pessimistic in recent decades.

I believe it began to move more towards greater levels of pessimism since around the 70s or 80s. I think given the exposure to endless streams of information in the current era, media in all forms need to push the boundaries of shock in order to generate a response. That means misinformation of course.

Its not specific to sport as it can be seen across many mediums but it would be interesting to know if sports journalism has been as badly infected.

McLoughlin

Gregk961 wrote: »

One huge takeaway from this whole thing has been how absolutely dreadful news reporting(particularly online) has become. BBCs fvck up aside, I've seen dozens of articles of absolute rubbish ranging from clickbait to just flat out misinformation.

Is it just me or has reporting, sport or otherwise, completely nosedived in the last 10 year's? The crossover of social media and news has been an absolute disaster. It's lead to some dangerously misinformed/misled people.

Most of my colleagues know I have a background in basketball so have been talking to me about Kobe over lunch etc and the amount of incorrect information I've had fed back to me has been unbelievable.

Its the rush to get things out there asap, i.e be the first on social media etc with poor editing and fact checking sadly a casualty

Itssoeasy

I think that the "journalism" in the kobe bryant has left a lot to be desired to say the least. I mean Rick fox telling of how his friend rang him in tears because he'd heard the reports that he was on the helicopter is horrific. Also, ABC news(one of the big three networks) reported that all his daughters were dead as well was shocking for a network with such a long history of doing good news. As was mentioned in the post above me, the need to be first has become more important than being correct.