Thread by @NYDailyNews

BREAKING: Former Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant was killed in a helicopter crash in Southern California, according to TMZ.
trib.al/XptmDoH

SEE PHOTOS: Remembering the life and career of Kobe Bryant
nydailynews.com/sports/ny-kobe…

SEE PHOTOS: Remembering Kobe Bryant and other athletes gone too soon
nydailynews.com/sports/athlete…

UPDATE: Kobe Bryant’s 13-year-old daughter Gianna Maria Onore, known as GiGi, was among the victims.
nydailynews.com/news/national/…

Kobe Bryant's former teammate Shaquille O'Neal tweeted following the crash.

"...My condolences goes out to the Bryant family and the families of the other passengers on board. IM SICK RIGHT NOW"
nydailynews.com/news/national/…

“We are stunned and devastated by the news of the sudden passing of Kobe Bryant.”

The NBA and the rest of the sports community react to the death of Kobe Bryant.

nydailynews.com/sports/basketb…

LUPICA: Kobe Bryant dies, and leaves behind one of the most complicated legacies we will see for an athlete of his fame and accomplishments.

nydailynews.com/sports/basketb…

Nine People.
Kobe Bryant, the L.A. Lakers great, with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna Maria Onore, known as GiGi, were killed in the chopper crash that killed what's believed to be 9 people

It occurred around 10 a.m. in foggy conditions above Calabasas.
nydailynews.com/news/national/…

REAX

Shaquille O’Neal
Former teammate Pau Gasol
Steve Ballmer
the Raptors-Spurs game
Adam Silver
... Barack Obama
#KobeBryant
nydailynews.com/sports/basketb…

Kobe Bryant heavy on fans, coaches, Madison Square Garden before Knicks-Nets game, @Krisplashed writes

The arena was awash in purple and gold.
nydailynews.com/sports/basketb…

@Krisplashed Longtime baseball coach John Altobelli among those killed in the helicopter crash that also included Kobe Bryant

Altobelli’s wife, Keri, and daughter, Alyssa, as well as Bryant’s daughter, Gianna, were also killed in the crash.
nydailynews.com/sports/basebal…

@Krisplashed LUPICA | There have been other tragedies like this in sports.

But never worse than this, because of the way Bryant dies and his daughter dies with him. This is beyond the notion of athletes dying young. @MikeLupica writes
nydailynews.com/sports/basketb…

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica Kobe was the greatest basketball star between Michael Jordan and LeBron James and even last night, he was back in the news as LeBron passed him as the 3rd-leading scorer in all of NBA history.

And yet it's impossible to sum things up with Kobe Bryant without mentioning ...

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica The Daily News reports from L.A.

One witness: “Never heard anything like it ... more of an explosion than the sound of a car crash. You could just see a swath of the mountain ... just black."

Bryant retired in 2016 No. 3 on the all-time scoring list
nydailynews.com/news/national/…

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica You could hear a pin drop at Madison Square Garden.
bit.ly/2RrP1Bw

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN Kyrie Irving had just nailed the biggest shot of his career, and felt compelled to Facetime his mentor.

Of all the Mamba pupils, Irving was the closest to Bryant.
@SBondyNYDN writes
nydailynews.com/sports/basketb…

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN Bryant death stuns sports world and nation

See our crash coverage, reaction and review of his career and legacy. The Daily News reports from New York and LA
bit.ly/2GsAcrT

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN Bryant's helicopter crash was the most shocking and saddening tragedy in NBA history.

Kobe was a global celebrity with admirers all over the world. People will never forget how and where they heard the news — including Knicks, Nets players and coaches
nydailynews.com/sports/basketb…

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN LUPICA on KOBE BRYANT

The worst moment of his public life did not define the rest of his life. But it also cannot be ignored.
bit.ly/2uBqOPY

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN Spencer Dinwiddie reflects on time with childhood hero, Kobe Bryant, and pays tribute in front of jam-packed Madison Square Garden crowd

The crowd of Knicks and Nets fans rose to its feet, at loudest of the night @Krisplashed writes
nydailynews.com/sports/basketb…

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN BBC News showed footage of LeBron James during a report on the death of Kobe Bryant.

nydailynews.com/news/national/…

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN STUNNED. Kobe Bryant, daughter, 7 others killed in crash bit.ly/2GsAcrT

MIKE LUPICA on Kobe Bryant bit.ly/2uBqOPY

BONDY on why Kobe death drowns "any human in sorrow — basketball fan or not." bit.ly/2RWkSZY

Our covers

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN As if this couldn't get any more heartbreaking. 💔

"And I wound up missing, like, a school play because I was sitting in traffic,” the father of four daughters said.

Kobe Bryant had revealed why he started riding in helicopters.
nydailynews.com/news/national/…

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN "It’s why my wife, who couldn’t care less about basketball, was crying."

Bryant grew & matured. And just thinking about his final moments on the helicopter w/ his daughter is enough to drown any human in sorrow — basketball fan or not.
@SBondyNYDN writes
nydailynews.com/sports/basketb…

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN OPINION | How I learned to like Kobe Bryant

I thought Bryant was a jerk: arrogant, petulant and self-centered. But he proved me wrong again, maturing into a thoughtful and socially conscious human being.

Jonathan Zimmerman of U. Penn. @PennGSE writes
nydailynews.com/opinion/ny-ope…

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN @PennGSE 💔s from N.Y. to L.A. — the Empire State Building grieves in salute to Kobe

The NBA postpones the Lakers-Clippers game bit.ly/36vNSwX

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN @PennGSE @dpyoung13 OPINION: Is the death of Bryant and his daughter a terrible tragedy? Undoubtedly.

But we cannot ignore what happened to that victim back in 2003. I bet she’s having a hard time right now, too.

nydailynews.com/opinion/ny-ope…

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN @PennGSE @dpyoung13 Shareef O’Neal, the son of Shaquille O’Neal, revealed the final social media messages he exchanged with Kobe Bryant just before the NBA legend’s death.

nydailynews.com/snyde/ny-kobe-…

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN @PennGSE @dpyoung13 LeBron James took to social media to reveal he was “heartbroken and devastated” over the death of Kobe Bryant.

Bryant’s final tweet was to applaud James for passing him on the NBA scoring list a day before his death.

nydailynews.com/sports/basketb…

@Krisplashed @MikeLupica @NYDNSports @BackPageGuyNYDN @SBondyNYDN @PennGSE @dpyoung13 "Devastated" Vanessa Bryant “can’t finish a sentence without crying" as she deals with the deaths of husband Kobe Bryant and their daughter Gianna in a helicopter crash.

They married nearly 20 years ago when she was 18, and he was 22.
nydailynews.com/news/national/…