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Presti35
Dick Lee for Legend Status
Joined: 05 Oct 2001 Location: London, England
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Post subject: Kobe Bryant 1978-2020 | |
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Devastating news today with the news that Kobe Bryant had died in a helicopter crash. Even more devastating is that his 12 year old daughter and 7 others perished in the accident.
The tributes from all around the world have been amazing. _________________ A Goal Saved Is 2 Goals Earned! |
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K
Joined: 09 Sep 2011
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Post subject: | |
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Kobe Bryant, Transformational Star of the N.B.A., Dies in Helicopter Crash
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/26/sports/basketball/kobe-bryant-helicopter-crash.html
"The helicopter went down near Calabasas, Calif., about 30 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles, in foggy conditions, though the authorities were investigating the cause. The helicopter was on its way from Orange County, Calif., where the Bryant family lives, to Mr. Bryant’s youth basketball academy northwest of Los Angeles, where he coaches his daughter Gianna, who died in the crash.
It was a moment of national mourning, coast to coast. Thousands of people converged at Staples Center, the Lakers’ home arena in downtown Los Angeles; condolences poured in from presidents, celebrities and sports luminaries; and several entertainers paid tribute to Mr. Bryant at the Grammy Awards, which took place at the arena hours later. A shrine emerged at Mr. Bryant’s high school alma mater in suburban Philadelphia.
Mr. Bryant, 41, a force of nature on the court who gave himself the nickname Black Mamba, retired in 2016 with five N.B.A. championship rings and a long list of N.B.A. records — he was surpassed by LeBron James on Saturday night for third on the N.B.A. career scoring list. Signing with the league right out of high school in 1996, he changed the way the N.B.A. identified, groomed and developed its youngest stars.
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On Saturday night, when Mr. James, playing for the Lakers in a loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, passed Mr. Bryant on the career scoring list, he was wearing sneakers on which he had inscribed “Mamba 4 Life,” a reference to Mr. Bryant’s nickname. Mr. Bryant later tweeted his congratulations, the last message on his handle’s timeline.
In many ways, Mr. Bryant was the bridge between Mr. Jordan and Mr. James, the two most glamorous stars of their eras.
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The son of a former N.B.A. player, Mr. Bryant spent part of his childhood in Italy, where his father, Joe Bryant, known as Jellybean, spent the bulk of his pro career. Kobe Bryant became fluent in Italian and in addition to playing basketball took up soccer.
He credited soccer with helping hone his vision of the basketball court.
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Like Mr. Jordan, Mr. Bryant was a multidimensional scorer. He could shoot from the outside and drive to the rim with flair.
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Off the court and away from Hollywood’s bright lights, Mr. Bryant’s legacy was far more complicated. He was arrested in 2003 after a sexual assault complaint was filed against him in Colorado. A 19-year-old hotel employee claimed that Mr. Bryant, who was working to rehabilitate his knee after surgery, had raped her. The legal case dragged on for months, and details of the aggressive encounter with the employee and Mr. Bryant’s interview with the police became national headlines.
Prosecutors eventually dropped the case when the victim declined to testify. A civil suit was settled privately out of court for an undisclosed sum, and Mr. Bryant publicly apologized for the incident." |
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K
Joined: 09 Sep 2011
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Post subject: | |
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"No one lives forever, no one is assured of anything and Kobe's death proves it.
As the Toronto Raptors and San Antonio Spurs tipped off their game on Monday (AEDT), each team held the ball for the full length of the 24-second shot clock in honour of Bryant, who wore number 24.
Spurs fans spent many years booing Bryant as his Lakers challenged them for titles. On Monday, they were chanting "Kobe, Kobe, Kobe" as the shot clock expired.
The game will go on, but Kobe will never be forgotten."
(Roy Ward, The Age) |
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Presti35
Dick Lee for Legend Status
Joined: 05 Oct 2001 Location: London, England
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Post subject: | |
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A lot of tributes throughout the week.
Lakers first game since the accident is on ESPN now. _________________ A Goal Saved Is 2 Goals Earned! |
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K
Joined: 09 Sep 2011
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Post subject: | |
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Presti35 wrote: | A lot of tributes throughout the week.
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But also some controversy, it must be acknowledged. |
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Pies4shaw
pies4shaw
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
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Post subject: | |
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Lakers lost. |
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Presti35
Dick Lee for Legend Status
Joined: 05 Oct 2001 Location: London, England
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Post subject: | |
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K wrote: | Presti35 wrote: | A lot of tributes throughout the week.
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But also some controversy, it must be acknowledged. |
A lot.
A journo from the Washington Post was suspended and was bombarded with a lot of hate male for her article about Kobe only hours after the accident. But there's now been a lot of heat thrown at the Washington Post for suspending her.
And a relation of Walt Disney has also made it known how she feels. Interestingly, there's been things said about Walt after his death too. I wonder if she has shared her thoughts on that? I'll have to look into it.
Sadly, it's a case that we'll never know the truth about. It could be true, it could be a money grabbing thing, it could be a false allegation, who knows? _________________ A Goal Saved Is 2 Goals Earned! |
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K
Joined: 09 Sep 2011
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Presti35
Dick Lee for Legend Status
Joined: 05 Oct 2001 Location: London, England
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Post subject: | |
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It's a horrible thing that happened. And we'll never know the truth.
There's people that will say she was after a payday.
There's people that will say he's guilty.
Similar to the Mike Tyson charge and the Tupac Shakur charge, except both of them served time. But there's been a lot of controversy in regards to their innocence.
Everyone is going to have an opinion. But no one will ever know the truth. He may be guilty, he may be innocent.
Some of the reporters timing is off, coming out in the hours after his death. Why not pursue this throughout the years since the incident? Not write it up on the day of the accident?
Some things being said, things like "he is a rapist" and "he is guilty" are not fair as he was never proven to be those things. And the woman did settle out of court. This can be seen as him buying his way out or avoiding a court case, but can also be seen that it was money that she, or her family, was after.
It's a tough one. _________________ A Goal Saved Is 2 Goals Earned! |
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Jezza
2023 PREMIERS!
Joined: 05 Sep 2010 Location: Ponsford End
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Post subject: | |
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I was never a big Basketball follower, but whenever I watched it I always liked Kobe and Shaq when they were dominating with the Lakers. _________________ | 1902 | 1903 | 1910 | 1917 | 1919 | 1927 | 1928 | 1929 | 1930 | 1935 | 1936 | 1953 | 1958 | 1990 | 2010 | 2023 |
Last edited by Jezza on Thu Feb 06, 2020 3:29 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Presti35
Dick Lee for Legend Status
Joined: 05 Oct 2001 Location: London, England
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Post subject: | |
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Shaq is an interesting character.
He'll be in Melbourne later in the year. They've struggled to sell tickets to the show, but the photo/meet and greet tickets sold out immediately.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUVnObpACCI
This link shows a great insight into Kobe and Shaqs relationship. This is also the kind of stuff you get at these shows.
I went to the Dennis Rodman show a few years back and it was great. I had the photo with him. I have regret over not going to the Kobe show, but the photo tickets were just too much.
I've also missed photo ops with Dellavedova, LaMelo Ball, Jayson Tatum and Paul Pierce recently. Ray Allen will be coming here in the coming weeks too, but that's more of a shooting school for kids. _________________ A Goal Saved Is 2 Goals Earned! |
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K
Joined: 09 Sep 2011
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Post subject: | |
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I have to say I was not impressed seeing Shaq unable to move or defend. Someone once told me size itself was a "skill". I don't think so. Having someone just stand there like a tree is not for me.
Once Shaq was the lone "defender" between his basket and the ball-carrier and he committed a foul. What for? I could not see. The replays showed that he just did the only thing he could: stuck out his leg to trip his opponent. The live camera was close up and therefore did not show the players' legs! |
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Chic131
Joined: 05 Feb 2020
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Presti35
Dick Lee for Legend Status
Joined: 05 Oct 2001 Location: London, England
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Post subject: | |
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Thats a great memory to have. _________________ A Goal Saved Is 2 Goals Earned! |
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Presti35
Dick Lee for Legend Status
Joined: 05 Oct 2001 Location: London, England
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Post subject: | |
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K wrote: | I have to say I was not impressed seeing Shaq unable to move or defend. Someone once told me size itself was a "skill". I don't think so. Having someone just stand there like a tree is not for me.
Once Shaq was the lone "defender" between his basket and the ball-carrier and he committed a foul. What for? I could not see. The replays showed that he just did the only thing he could: stuck out his leg to trip his opponent. The live camera was close up and therefore did not show the players' legs! |
I'm of the opinion that Olajuwon is the best centre of all time. With respect to Kareem and Wilt who are extremely close. Shaq was still an absolute beast tho. _________________ A Goal Saved Is 2 Goals Earned! |
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