Kobe Bryant called his daughter Gianna "Mambacita" after his own court nickname, "Black Mamba," confident she would follow in his footsteps and become a professional basketball player. On Sunday, the 41-year-old five-time NBA champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist died with his 13-year-old daughter and seven others in a helicopter crash northwest of Los Angeles as they pursued that dream.
Kobe Bryant, who won five NBA championships with the Los Angeles Lakers, died at age 41 on Sunday in a helicopter crash in California. Nicknamed the 'Black Mamba,' he won NBA championships with the Lakers in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009 and 2010.
'I'm tempted to say that he's in a better place now, but I'm quite sure he's not.' 'There was no better place for him than the basketball court, and now he'll never set foot on one again. Because he's gone,' says Dhruv Munjal.