Memorable moments of Kobe Bryant’s family life
Retired NBA star Kobe Bryant died on Sunday alongside his daughter Gianna Bryant and seven other people who were on board his private helicopter.
According to TMZ, they were on their way to the Mamba Academy for a basketball practice when the crash occurred.
Bryant is survived by Vanessa Bryant, with whom they had four daughters – Natalia Diamante Bryant, Bianka Bella Bryant, Gianna Marie-Onore Bryant and Capri Kobe Bryant, who is just 17 weeks old.
To mark their 20th anniversary on November 28, 2019, Bryant posted a touching message on Instagram in which he referred to his wife as “queen”.
“On this day 20 years ago I met my best friend, my Queen @vanessabryant I decided to take her on a date to Disneyland tonight to celebrate old school style (pre 4princesses) I love you my Mamacita per sempre,” his message read.
The couple met when Vanessa was 17 years old and working as a background model on the set of a music video. Bryant was 21 then and still a senior at high school.
Their relationship sparked a media frenzy at the time. According to the Los Angeles Times, a TV helicopter once flew over Vanessa’s campus to try and catch a glimpse at her and Bryant together.
Within a year of meeting, Bryant popped the question to his beautiful girlfriend. Six months later, the pair walked down the aisle as bride and groom in a low key wedding in April 2001.
However, in December 2011 Vanessa filed for divorce citing “irreconcilable differences”.
Vanessa was expected to get half of Kobe’s $150 million fortune but in 2013, the couple announced that they had called off their divorce.
It’s after that they had their third daughter Bianka, while their last-born daughter arrived in June of 2019.