Los Angeles Sparks head coach Joe Bryant smiles to the referee during the second half of a WNBA basketball game against the Chicago Sky in Los Angeles on September 10, 2011.
Lori Shepler/AP
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Lori Shepler/AP
Kobe Bryant’s father, Joe “Jellybean” Bryant, has died at the age of 69, according to his alma mater. season.
“We are sad to announce the passing of La Salle basketball great Joe Bryant,” the university said Tuesday. “Joe played for the Explorers from 1973-75 and was a member of our coaching staff from 1993-96. He was A beloved member of the Explorer family, he will be deeply missed.
Kobe was selected by the Golden State Warriors with the 14th overall pick in the first round of the 1975 NBA draft. He was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers, where he played for four years. He spent three more seasons with the San Diego Clippers and one with the Houston Rockets before spending time with teams in Italy and France, according to NBA.com.
The 76ers said: “Joe ‘Judge’ Bryant is a local basketball icon whose legacy on the court transcends his time at Bartram High School, La Salle University and his time with the 76ers. (1975-79)’s first four NBA seasons. “Our condolences go out to Kobe’s family. “
He later coached teams in Italy, Thailand and Japan, as well as the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks.
“The Sparks are saddened by the passing of former head coach Joe “Judge” Bryant and extend our condolences to the Kobe Bryant family,” the Sparks said in a statement.
“Our condolences upon hearing the news of my father-in-law’s passing,” Kobe Bryant’s widow, Vanessa Bryant, said on Instagram. “We wish things would have been different. Although we had very little time together. , but he was always sweet and kind. Kobe loved him very much and we prayed for him.
Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna died in a helicopter crash in 2020, along with seven others.
