As the world is coming to terms with the death of Former NBA star Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna "Gigi" Bryant, and seven others on board on the helicopter, attention has shifted to Kobe’s remaining family members.
His Sikorsky S-76 craft went down on Sunday in low clouds and foggy weather shortly before 10 am (1800 GMT) in hilly terrain just outside Calabasas, California, about 40 miles (65 km) northwest of central Los Angeles, sparking a brush fire.
But while the world is mourning the NBA legend, his history with his parents has been a rocky one over the past decade.
Kobe was the son of a former NBA player, forward Joe “Jellybean” Bryant and Pamela Bryant.
Pam and Joe Bryant had three children together, son Kobe and daughters Sharia and Shaya.
Kobe and his parents, who helped pave his path to the NBA through most of his career, were close growing up, but they publicly fell out in 2013 as he found stardom with the Los Angeles Lakers.
This was after Kobe's mother decided to sell more than 100 pieces of memorabilia without his knowledge to an auction house in New Jersey for an advance of $450,000 so she and her husband could buy a new house.
Her mother claimed Kobe had given her the rights to the items.
Kobe sued the auction house, and a settlement was reached stating that six of Kobe's items could be sold that is, two high school basketball uniforms and two rings from the 2000 Lakers championship team.
Kobe told ESPN in 2016, “Our relationship is s–t. I say, ‘I’m going to buy you a very nice home,’ and the response is, ‘That’s not good enough?’ Then you’re selling my s–t?”
He also revealed that he no longer gave Sharia and Shaya money.
"They're very smart, college-educated. I'm really proud of them. They were able to get their own jobs, get their own lives, take care of themselves," he said.
Missing to attend his Wedding
Orlando Sentinel reported in 2003, Kobe’s parents along with their daughters Sharia and Shaya, did not attend Kobe and Vanessa’s wedding in California, in 2001, reportedly not happy that they were too young to tie the knot.
Kobe did not invite his parents when he was getting married at 21 to 18-year-old Vanessa.
However, after the couple welcomed their first child, Natalia, Kobe and his mother were able to mend their strained relationship, a reconciliation that remained out of spotlight in the years that followed.
This was evident after Joe and Pam were not invited to Kobe’s final NBA game before he retired in 2016.
Kobe attended the game with his wife and daughters Natalia, Gianna and Bianka, and he did not mention his parents during his retirement ceremony speech.
Since 2016, Kobe has not spoken much of their relationship following his retirement, and it's unclear if they reconciled before his death.
However, according to the Sun, after Bryant death, Kobe’s mother said she was not yet ready to speak about her son's death.
When asked if she had anything to say, an emotional Pamela, who married husband Joe Bryant in 1975, said, "Not right now."
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