The sports world reflects on Kobe Bryant’s impact on the fifth anniversary of his death

Five years ago today, NBA icon Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others were killed when a helicopter crashed into the side of a mountain in Calabasas, California. He was 41 years ago.

Bryant’s legacy and influence is still felt throughout the world of sports and entertainment to this day, as made clear by the wave of tributes that have flooded the Internet to remember and celebrate Bryant’s accomplishments on and off the field.

Dear Hamby he still smiles at the memory of Bryant sitting courtside WNBA games.

She met him years ago when he came to see her old team Las Vegas Acesplay all the time.

“I think one of the first things he told me was that I could play defense,” Hamby recalled. “And I was like ‘What?’ … That’s something I’ll keep with me forever.”

It’s the epitome of the late NBA great’s relationship with the women’s game. After his 20-year playing career ended, Bryant focused on the next generation, mentoring some of the biggest stars in women’s basketball, from WNBA champions to Olympic gold medalists Diana Taurasi to the former Oregon star Sabrina Ionescu.

He worked with them, analyzed the strengths and weaknesses of their game and pushed them to reach the same heights of popularity as he and his NBA peers.

For Hamby, now with Los Angeles SparksBryant saw a side of her game she didn’t even know she had.

“If Kobe tells you (that) you can play defense, you can play defense,” she joked.

Several women’s basketball players reflected on what Bryant meant to their game and how he supported it. Many of them thought they would be pleased with the overall progress of women’s sports, which have exploded in popularity and reach in recent years.

That growth was most prominent in the women’s basketball arenas that Bryant and Gianna loved so much.

Last season, the WNBA had the most watched regular season in 24 years and the best attendance in 22 seasons. Some of the league’s most popular players are competing right now a new 3-on-3 league in South Florida called Unrivaledfounded by Olympic gold medalists Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier.

“We’re continuing this for him,” he said Satou Saballiforward from the VNBA Dallas Wings who plays for the Phantom team in Unrivaled. “He would be so proud of this league. He would be proud of ‘Phe and Stewie. I know he’s looking down, and I hope he’s smiling and proud of us.”

Sabali said she still gets emotional when she thinks about that day on Jan. 26, 2020. It reminds her of her playing days at Oregon, when she, Ionescu and their Ducks teammates connected through Bryant.

“I think about how we all bonded over Kobe and how we bonded for the rest of our lives because he was so impactful,” Sabali added. “He was really a person who sees us women as the talents that we are. He came to the games, he was so open and he was really supportive.”

“I still remember exactly where I was whenever we heard the news,” he said Kate Martin of the Golden State Valkyriesplaying for Laces BC at Unrivaled, “and nobody really knew if it was fake or real. I think it’s just one of those things where you’ll always remember exactly where you were when you heard it.”

Martin never met Bryant, but she said she appreciated his mentality — he had a relentless competitiveness — and the way he elevated women’s sports.

Bryant became heavily involved in his daughters’ travels and coached Gianna’s youth team. He often attended women’s basketball games, especially college ones, with Gianna, who was fascinated UConn Huskies. Gianna was in line to carry on Bryant’s legacy on the court. The plan was for her to attend Connecticut, and surely the WNBA was next.

There’s an image that still circulates in the sports world today: Kobe and Gianna sitting courtside at a 2019 game. Los Angeles Lakers. He was wearing a bright orange pullover with a white WNBA logo on the front. Gianna sat beaming next to him.

“I think a lot of people started following Kobe because he recognized our gift and our talent and how special he really is,” said the former Chicago Ski head coach Teresa Weatherspoon, current coach of Vinyl BC Unrivaled. “And there was his daughter.”

That’s what Bryant has become – the face of women’s sports advocacy.

“He’s sorely missed,” Martin said. “But now his legacy will live on forever.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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