Vanessa Bryant, the widow of Los Angeles Lakers Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant, has spoken out on the death of her father-in-law, Joe ‘Jellybean’ Bryant.
Despite her difficult past with her late husband’s parents, on Tuesday, July 16, Vanessa, 42, shared a tribute to mourn the loss of her father-in-law as news of his passing came in.
“Sending our condolences upon hearing the news of my father in law’s passing. We hoped things would’ve been different. Although the times we spent together were few, he was always sweet and nice to be around. Kobe loved him very much. Our prayers go out to family,” Vanessa wrote in a post on Instagram Stories.
Vanessa Bryant on Joe Bryant’s passing: pic.twitter.com/Y1FeTDpFgd
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) July 16, 2024
The Philadelphia Inquirer was the first to report the news after La Salle University head coach Fran Dunphy confirmed to the outlet that Joe suffered a stroke, leading to his passing at 69, four years after the tragic deaths of Kobe Bryant at 41 and Gianna Bryant at 13.
For years, it was known that Kobe and his parents did not have the best relationship.
The drama reportedly began when he married his wife of almost 20 years in 2001. Kobe told the Sentinel that his dad opted not to attend the wedding, though he wasn’t surprised, stating he “knew he wouldn’t come down and see me. He never does.” It was later reported that Joe didn’t attend Kobe’s wedding because he was upset that Kobe married a Latina woman and not someone who is Black, a claim Joe denied.
After some efforts at reconciliation following the birth of his and Vanessa’s first child, Natalia, 21, in 2003, Kobe and his parents battled over the sale of items from his high school basketball career and his early days with the Lakers. They claimed they needed to sell the items to buy a home. However, Kobe claimed he never permitted them to do so.
In a 2016 interview with ESPN, the Black Mamba revealed that he hadn’t spoken to his parents in three years.
“Our relationship is s**t,” he said. “I say [to them], ‘I’m going to buy you a very nice home, and the response is ‘That’s not good enough’?” he continued. “Then you’re selling my s**t?”
Kobe eventually won the case and received an apology from his parents, which read: “We apologize for any misunderstanding and unintended pain we may have caused our son and appreciate the financial support that he has provided to us over the years.”
While it’s unclear how close they were when Kobe died, both Joe and Pam paid tribute to their late son and granddaughter, Kobe and Vanessa’s second daughter, Gigi, during the beautiful memorial at the Staples Center.