Derek Jeter Mourns Friend Kobe Bryant: ‘I Never Saw Him Happier Than Courtside With Gigi’

Derek Jeter honored Kobe Bryant the family man in a beautiful essay, writing about how the late NBA legend loved talking about his wife and daughters more than any career accomplishment.

By:
Reading Time: 2 minute
January 27, 2020 10:35AM EST
Derek Jeter Kobe Bryant
View gallery
Kobe Bryant, Vanessa Bryant, Gianna Bryant and Natalia Bryant 'A Wrinkle in Time' film premiere, Arrivals, Los Angeles, USA - 26 Feb 2018
Gianna Bryant sits on the shoulders of her father, Kobe Bryant, as they attend the women's soccer match between the United States and China, in San DiegoChina USA Women soccer, San Diego, USA
The retirement of the Los Angeles Lakers player, Kobe Bryant's #8 and #24 jerseys was held Monday December 18, 2017 in Los Angeles, California during half time of the game between with the Golden State Warriors. Kobe Bryant with his family (L-R) Gianna Maria-Onore, wife, Vanessa Laine Bryant, Kobe Bryant holding Bianka Bella and Natalia Diamante. 18 Dec 2017 Pictured: The retirement of the Los Angeles Lakers player, Kobe Bryant's #8 and #24 jerseys was held Monday December 18, 2017 in Los Angeles, California during half time of the game between with the Golden State Warriors. Kobe Bryant with his family (L-R) Gianna Maria-Onore, wife, Vanessa Laine Bryant, Kobe Bryant holding Bianka Bella and Natalia Diamante. Photo credit: ZUMAPRESS.com / MEGA TheMegaAgency.com +1 888 505 6342 (Mega Agency TagID: MEGA135063_001.jpg) [Photo via Mega Agency]
Image Credit: Shutterstock

Derek Jeter paid tribute to his dear friend, Kobe Bryant, 41, by writing a phenomenal essay just hours after his untimely death on January 26. Rather than writing about Kobe’s career accomplishments, the MLB legend, 45, focused on Kobe the family man, who deeply loved his wife, Vanessa Bryant, and daughters, including 13-year-old Gianna “Gigi” Bryant, who died along with him in the helicopter crash. “Kobe just loved being a dad,” Derek wrote in his essay in The Player’s Tribune. “And when it comes to his legacy, I really hope we’re able to take the time to remember that as an essential part of it.”

While they could’ve spent hours talking about basketball and baseball, Derek said the conversations he and Kobe had about his daughters — Gigi, Natalia, 17, Bianka, 3, and newborn Capri — were the ones he would remember the most. “Here was this guy who was beyond gifted as an athlete, who was obsessed with being a champion, who was known as an absolute assassin with a ball in his hands,” Derek wrote. “He cared much more about being a husband to Vanessa and a dad to his girls. He loved his family — he was his family. That’s what was important. And that’s the Kobe I’ll remember.”

Kobe’s moments with Gigi were particularly poignant to Derek. Kobe was infinitely proud of his daughter, who declared that she would carry on his legacy by playing in the NBA. Kobe and Gigi were on the way to her basketball practice at Mamba Sports Academy in Sherman Oaks, California, when their helicopter crashed. All other passengers onboard the helicopter died: Gianna’s teammates, Alyssa Altobelli and Payton Chester, Alyssa’s parents, John Altobelli and Keri Altobelli, Payton’s mom, Sarah Chester, Gianna’s basketball coach, Christina Mauser, and helicopter pilot Ara Zobayan.

“I’ve seen [Kobe] win gold medals and championship rings. But I’ve still never seen him look as happy, in those big moments on the court, as he looked the other day off of it: with an arm around Gigi, sitting courtside, and just….. talking,” Derek wrote. “Yeah, sure, talking hoops — but you got the feeling in those moments that he would have been content talking about anything.”