(Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
Four years after the NBA community lost the legendary Kobe Bryant, his father has also passed away.
According to a report by the Philadelphia Inquirer (via ClutchPoints), Joe ‘Jellybean’ Bryant, the father of the Los Angeles Lakers great, has died at the age of 69.
Per the report, Bryant suffered a ‘massive stroke.’
Joe “Jellybean” Bryant, the father of former Lakers star Kobe Bryant, has passed away at the age of 69, per @PhillyInquirer.
Thoughts and prayers to the Bryant family pic.twitter.com/fpN9RGcKGT
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) July 16, 2024
Joe was a standout basketball player at Bartram High School and La Salle, becoming a bit of a cultural icon in Philadelphia.
He spent eight seasons in the NBA and also played overseas.
Bryant was a 6-foot-9 forward.
He was named the Public League Player of the Year back in 1972 before averaging over 20 points and 11 rebounds a game in two years at La Salle.
The Golden State Warriors took him in the first round of the 1975 NBA Draft before selling his rights to the Philadelphia 76ers.
He spent four years in Philadelphia and even helped the team make it to the NBA Finals in 1977 as a reserve.
Then, in 1983, he pursued a career in Europe, thriving in Italy.
Joe and his son, Kobe, grew apart as the latter became one of the most prominent players the game of basketball had ever seen.
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