Fans Gather Throughout LA to Mourn Death of Basketball Legend Kobe Bryant
"I feel just disbelief, it's Kobe -- he is invincible."
By Sydney Kalich and Heather Navarro ••
Getty Images
NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 2: Kobe Bryant #24 of the Los Angeles Lakers looks on against the New York Knicks on February 2, 2009 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by: Nick Laham/Getty Images)
Fan mourned and paid their respects to Lakers great Kobe Bryant throughout Los Angeles, just hours after his death in a Calabasas helicopter crash.
A group of fans gathered in the streets surrounding the Calabasas hillside where the helicopter crashed just before 10 a.m. on a foggy Sunday, carrying Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven other people.
"I feel just disbelief, it's Kobe -- he is invincible," a fan who gathered at the crash site said through tears.
Fans of Kobe Bryant spoke to KNBC about their feelings following the reports of his death. Hear what some of them had to say as they gathered near the spot where Bryant’s helicopter crashed on Sunday morning.
“I’m really concerned about his family," said another fan wearing a jersey as he stared at the smoke around the hillside. "Being here is a little bit harder than I thought. Seeing the smoke is making it a little too real for me."
NBCLA
The pylons at LAX are glowing in Lakers colors on a somber morning in Los Angeles Monday Jan. 27, 2020, a day after the death of Kobe Bryant.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 26: A fans mourns the death of retired NBA star Kobe Bryant outside the Staples Center prior to the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards on January 26, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. Bryant, 41, died today in a helicopter crash in near Calabasas, California. (Photo by Rachel Luna/Getty Images)
People gather around a makeshift memorial for former NBA and Los Angeles Lakers player Kobe Bryant after learning of his death at LA Live plaza in front of Staples Center in Los Angeles on January 26, 2020. – NBA legend Kobe Bryant died January 26, 2020 in a helicopter crash in suburban Los Angeles, celebrity website TMZ reported, saying five people are confirmed dead in the incident. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown / AFP) (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
A makeshift memorial for former NBA and Los Angeles Lakers player Kobe Bryant is pictured after learning of his death at LA Live plaza in front of Staples Center in Los Angeles on January 26, 2020. – NBA legend Kobe Bryant died January 26, 2020 in a helicopter crash in suburban Los Angeles, celebrity website TMZ reported, saying five people are confirmed dead in the incident. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown / AFP) (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
People gather around a makeshift memorial for former NBA and Los Angeles Lakers player Kobe Bryant after learning of his death at LA Live plaza in front of Staples Center in Los Angeles on January 26, 2020. – NBA legend Kobe Bryant died January 26, 2020 in a helicopter crash in suburban Los Angeles, celebrity website TMZ reported, saying five people are confirmed dead in the incident. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown / AFP) (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
People gather around a makeshift memorial for former NBA and Los Angeles Lakers player Kobe Bryant after learning of his death at LA Live plaza in front of Staples Center in Los Angeles on January 26, 2020. – NBA legend Kobe Bryant died January 26, 2020 in a helicopter crash in suburban Los Angeles, celebrity website TMZ reported, saying five people are confirmed dead in the incident. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown / AFP) (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 26: Los Angeles Lakers fan Victor Chavez, 30, of Los Angeles, mourns the death of retired NBA star Kobe Bryant outside the Staples Center prior to the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards on January 26, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. Bryant, 41, died today in a helicopter crash in near Calabasas, California (Photo by Rachel Luna/Getty Images)
People gather around a makeshift memorial for former NBA and Los Angeles Lakers player Kobe Bryant after learning of his death at LA Live plaza in front of Staples Center in Los Angeles on January 26, 2020. – NBA legend Kobe Bryant died January 26, 2020 in a helicopter crash in suburban Los Angeles, celebrity website TMZ reported, saying five people are confirmed dead in the incident. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown / AFP) (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
People gather around a makeshift memorial for former NBA and Los Angeles Lakers player Kobe Bryant after learning of his death at LA Live plaza in front of Staples Center in Los Angeles on January 26, 2020. – NBA legend Kobe Bryant died January 26, 2020 in a helicopter crash in suburban Los Angeles, celebrity website TMZ reported, saying five people are confirmed dead in the incident. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown / AFP) (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
People gather around a makeshift memorial for former NBA and Los Angeles Lakers player Kobe Bryant after learning of his death at LA Live plaza in front of Staples Center in Los Angeles on January 26, 2020. – NBA legend Kobe Bryant died January 26, 2020 in a helicopter crash in suburban Los Angeles, celebrity website TMZ reported, saying five people are confirmed dead in the incident. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown / AFP) (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 26: Flowers and tributes are left at a makeshift memorial for former NBA player Kobe Bryant outside the 62nd Annual GRAMMY Awards at STAPLES Center on January 26, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. Bryant, 41, died today in a helicopter crash in near Calabasas, California. (Photo by Rachel Luna/Getty Images)
People gather around a makeshift memorial for former NBA and Los Angeles Lakers player Kobe Bryant after learning of his death at LA Live plaza in front of Staples Center in Los Angeles on January 26, 2020. – NBA legend Kobe Bryant died January 26, 2020 in a helicopter crash in suburban Los Angeles, celebrity website TMZ reported, saying five people are confirmed dead in the incident. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown / AFP) (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 26: Los Angeles Lakers fans mourn the death of retired NBA star Kobe Bryant outside the Staples Center prior to the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards on January 26, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. Bryant, 41, died today in a helicopter crash in near Calabasas, California. (Photo by Rachel Luna/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 26: A woman holds a sign to remember retired NBA star Kobe Bryant outside the Staples Center prior to the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards on January 26, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. Bryant, 41, died today in a helicopter crash in near Calabasas, California. (Photo by Rachel Luna/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA – JANUARY 26: A general view outside of the Staples Center where a makeshift memorial for Kobe Bryant has been setup by fans who have gathered to honor the basketball star after news broke of his death on January 26, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. NBA champion and a two-time Olympic gold medalist Kobe Bryant, 41, and his daughter Gianna died in a helicopter crash earlier today in Calabasas, California. (Photo by AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 26: (L-R) Los Angeles Lakers fans Lilian Gamez, Gabriel Gamez and Angelica Rodriguez mourn the death of retired NBA star Kobe Bryant outside the Staples Center prior to the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards on January 26, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. Bryant, 41, died today in a helicopter crash in near Calabasas, California. (Photo by Rachel Luna/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 26: Former NBA player Kobe Bryant is remembered outside the 62nd Annual GRAMMY Awards at STAPLES Center on January 26, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. Bryant, 41, died today in a helicopter crash in near Calabasas, California. (Photo by Rachel Luna/Getty Images)
People gather to pay tribute to former NBA and Los Angeles Lakers player Kobe Bryant on January 26, 2020 following his death in a helicopter crash near Los Angeles. – Nine people were killed in the helicopter crash which claimed the life of NBA star Kobe Bryant and his 13 year old daughter, Los Angeles officials confirmed on Sunday. Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva said eight passengers and the pilot of the aircraft died in the accident. The helicopter crashed in foggy weather in the Los Angeles suburb of Calabasas. Authorities said firefighters received a call shortly at 9:47 am about the crash, which caused a brush fire on a hillside. (Photo by Chris Delmas / AFP) (Photo by CHRIS DELMAS/AFP via Getty Images)
Another fan said he was eating breakfast nearby when he saw the plane. "We were eating having a good time and saw a helicopter fly by, low and kind of losing control," he said.
"Then just two minutes, we hear a great legend was in that helicopter. It's insane. A lot of people in Los Angeles look up to this guy because he came from nothing. It's literally the American dream."
These parishioners may not have known Kobe Bryant personally, but they felt like they knew him and feel the void he left behind. Hetty Chang reports for the NBC4 News at 11 p.m. Monday, Jan. 27, 2020.
"I feel his presence. I feel Los Angeles’ presence," Phillip, a fan who arrived at the crash site wearing a Kobe jersey and decked out in Lakers gear, said through tears. "In my 45 years of living, I have not felt this much grief."
Fans mourned the legend outside the Staples Center, holding posters and chanting "Kobe, Kobe, Kobe!"
LA Lakers fans mourn the death of Kobe Bryant outside of the Staples Center.
— NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt (@NBCNightlyNews) January 26, 2020
"It's not real. I feel for Vanessa, his daughters, his loving dad. Everybody here has so much pain," said Crystal, sobbing outside of Staples Center. "Kobe is so great and I'm waiting for someone to tell me this isn't real. I feel like I just lost part of me. Growing up watching him play, I played basketball because of him."
"This shows how much he was loved," said Justin, who drove from Whittier to the Staples Center said. "He was the whole city of LA."
City officials told grieving fans they could gather at Juan Bautista de Anza Park at 3701 Lost Hills Rd. in Calabasas.
Heartbreak at the Staples Center as fans gather to remember one of the greatest athletes of all time. Rest In Peace Kobe Bryant. #RIPMamba#Kobepic.twitter.com/QYgro4NQ4S
