TMZ reporting Kobe killed in copter crash

[CuseFaninVT]

YUP

So hard for me to imagine playing this game

 

[OrangeDW]

For a guy who still doesn’t have the buy-in of some Laker fans, due to not being Kobe, that had to have earned him some cred.

The thing with a decent amount of Laker fans is...they’re friggin stupid.

Comes with the territory for a franchise like that. The amount of moronic Yankee fans I have to try to ignore every summer is insane. I pretend I don’t even like baseball with a lot of them now.

Heck, Cuse hoops has that too...listen to what half those geniuses at the Dome tomorrow night will say if we lose.

 

[longislandcuse]

Lots of respect for LeBron. Pushed through tears and spoke from the heart to the Staples crowd. For a guy who still doesn’t have the buy-in of some Laker fans, due to not being Kobe, that had to have earned him some cred.

Getting smoked by Dame in the “win it for Kobe game” probably gave that cred right back...

 

[OrangeDW]

Getting smoked by Dame in the “win it for Kobe game” probably gave that cred right back...

I mean...Bron ain’t guarding Dame right?(I can’t watch and care yet)

Any Laker fan hating on Bron because he’s not Kobe, was probably hating on Kobe when he shot the air balls against Utah in ‘97...if they are even old enough to have been fans back then, that is.

Bron brought the franchise back. People are stupid.

 

[longislandcuse]

I mean...Bron ain’t guarding Dame right?(I can’t watch and care yet)

Any Laker fan hating on Bron because he’s not Kobe, was probably hating on Kobe when he shot the air balls against Utah in ‘97...if they are even old enough to have been fans back then, that is.

Bron brought the franchise back. People are stupid.

Oh, for sure, but there was one man out there tonight who had Mamba Mentality... it was Dame Dolla. Dude was unstoppable, mean-muggin and talking trash all night. If anything, he paid the greatest tribute of the night to Kobe.

 

[OrangeDW]

Oh, for sure, but there was one man out there tonight who had Mamba Mentality... it was Dame Dolla. Dude was unstoppable, mean-muggin and talking trash all night. If anything, he paid the greatest tribute of the night to Kobe.

Dame is one of my favorite players in the league. Probably my favorite non-Laker, non-Cuse player. Love that guy.

 

[Eric15]

LeBron got my boy.

Lebron is the most irrationally disliked person in sports. He's such a good-natured, genuine person.

 

[Bulldog04]

Lebron is the most irrationally disliked person in sports. He's such a good-natured, genuine person.

It baffles me how people can dislike him. He has done more for kids and has accomplished so much and is so unselfish. The guy has $400m committed to scholarships and schooling over the next 20 years. Kid came from nothing and became one of the biggest athletes ever who constantly gives back and has always done the right thing as a humanitarian

 

[Fireball Jr.]

Lots of respect for LeBron. Pushed through tears and spoke from the heart to the Staples crowd. For a guy who still doesn’t have the buy-in of some Laker fans, due to not being Kobe, that had to have earned him some cred.

A Standing O to whoever came up with the idea to have Boyz II Men sing the anthem. Great artists with the perfect name for this moment. We watched Kobe & LeBron go from boys to men.

 

[Bayside44]

Lebron is the most irrationally disliked person in sports. He's such a good-natured, genuine person.

This generation of athletes seem more socially conscious, or at least have platforms to speak. He seems like a far better husband and parent that those that came before him as well.

The Decision though will always weigh on him for the generation that grew up with Jordan, Magic, Bird, and yeah, Kobe. Their idea of playing with friends was the Olympics.

 

[longislandcuse]

This generation of athletes seem more socially conscious, or at least have platforms to speak. He seems like a far better husband and parent that those that came before him as well.

The Decision though will always weigh on him for the generation that grew up with Jordan, Magic, Bird, and yeah, Kobe. Their idea of playing with friends was the Olympics.

This. In basketball circles, he’s not Kobe. He doesn’t go at people. He’s teamed up with people.

Thats always going to hurt him in the eyes of those people, and not just him, they don’t even acknowledge KD as a Champ.

 

[SUskibum]

This. In basketball circles, he’s not Kobe. He doesn’t go at people. He’s teamed up with people.

Thats always going to hurt him in the eyes of those people, and not just him, they don’t even acknowledge KD as a Champ.

LeBron joined an all star team, Kobe kicked the best player in the league off his team.

 

[maxxyz]

Lebron is the most irrationally disliked person in sports. He's such a good-natured, genuine person.

You're right, but he's still living down the marketing debacle that was THE DECISION. Months of rediculous pandering leading up to an overblown special event culminating with "I'm taking my talents to South Beach". It was more drama than a Kardashian wedding. And people remember.

 

[Ghost]

You're right, but he's still living down the marketing debacle that was THE DECISION. Months of rediculous pandering leading up to an overblown special event culminating with "I'm taking my talents to South Beach". It was more drama than a Kardashian wedding. And people remember.

Isn't that what Kobe initially said when he went to the NBA from HS? Spooky.

 

[two3zone]

This generation of athletes seem more socially conscious, or at least have platforms to speak. He seems like a far better husband and parent that those that came before him as well.

The Decision though will always weigh on him for the generation that grew up with Jordan, Magic, Bird, and yeah, Kobe. Their idea of playing with friends was the Olympics.

The decision where 100% of the proceeds went charity.

 

[STEVEHOLT]

Wouldn’t the owner be the one who could possibly be culpable? According to Business Insider (not a pay site), Kobe Bryant didn’t own the helicopter.See below:


“Bryant's helicopter, a Sikorsky S-76B built in 1991, was previously owned by the state of Illinois, according to records from the Federal Aviation Administration and the helicopter database Helis. The state flew the helicopter from 2007 to 2015, when it was put up for sale. It was not immediately clear who owned the helicopter before 2007.

In 2015, the helicopter was purchased from the state by a person named Jim Bagge, an executive at a company called Island Express Holding Corp., for $515,161, the Daily Beast reported.

Island Express has remained the owner and operator of the helicopter since 2015. It was not immediately clear whether Bryant leased the helicopter full time or chartered it as needed. It was also not clear whether Island Express provided a pilot or whether Bryant hired one separately.”

500k? Seems like a bargain ..

 

[kirbivore]

Agree. I'd would argue that even if Kobe did lease/contract the pilot, it's a relative weak argument holding Kobe's estate liable in my view. Kobe is not in the "business" of helicopters or its pilots, etc. It appears based upon the pilot's background, he was highly regarded, trained/licensed to fly instrumentation along with visual flight rules, 8200 hours of flight time, etc. It would appear that being the case, the pilot was fully vetted from a due diligence standpoint, etc. The pilot bears the ultimate authority when it comes to making the final decision to fly when conditions get dicey, as they were. If it turns out that there wasn't any mechanical issues, which preliminary reports lean towards, routine maintenance performed (which also appears to be the case, mention of same being performed every 25 hours of flight time, etc.) a lot/most of this will fall on pilot error.

What's really puzzling (especially as a seasoned pilot) if he became so disorientated in the clouds/fog/marine layer, etc. why was he going so fast just before impact? Helicopters obviously hover, why not hover the copter and then ease it down and land it in some field or other safe area? I've read that in such cases, he could have been subject to an FAA reprimand, etc., but big deal in the realm of things. Perhaps, with Kobe on board and being such a high VIP, he just let his ego get in the way and didn't want to disappoint/have to admit that he couldn't get Kobe & company to their destination on time at this point without risking too much.

One lawsuit angle the families could take is perhaps the pilot didn't want to fly and Kobe forced him to.

 

[orangecuse]

One lawsuit angle the families could take is perhaps the pilot didn't want to fly and Kobe forced him to.

They can argue all they want, but it's very weak (from a legal standpoint). Kobe has no authority whatsoever over the pilot. He does not direct, train, supervise, etc. him in anyway. And, ultimately it's 100% the pilot's final call/say. The fact that Kobe was a VIP has no legal bearing on his exposure (liability) though no doubt it likely played a role in the pilot's culpability to push through at all cost vs. aborting the original destination route, and/or to abort all together. "Get-there-itis" for sure the pilot was dealing with on top of the elements. But that's 100% on him.

 

[Eric15]

Obviously don't mean this to sound disrespectful to either of them, but two weeks ago I feel like the statistical odds of Kobe Bryant passing away before Kirk Douglas would literally be millions-to-1.

 

[Mareiniss]

Wouldn’t the owner be the one who could possibly be culpable? According to Business Insider (not a pay site), Kobe Bryant didn’t own the helicopter.See below:


“Bryant's helicopter, a Sikorsky S-76B built in 1991, was previously owned by the state of Illinois, according to records from the Federal Aviation Administration and the helicopter database Helis. The state flew the helicopter from 2007 to 2015, when it was put up for sale. It was not immediately clear who owned the helicopter before 2007.

In 2015, the helicopter was purchased from the state by a person named Jim Bagge, an executive at a company called Island Express Holding Corp., for $515,161, the Daily Beast reported.

Island Express has remained the owner and operator of the helicopter since 2015. It was not immediately clear whether Bryant leased the helicopter full time or chartered it as needed. It was also not clear whether Island Express provided a pilot or whether Bryant hired one separately.”

Kobe Bryant's widow has reportedly settled her wrongful death lawsuit with the pilot and owners of the helicopter that crashed in January, 2020. The lawsuit alleged the companies didn’t properly train or supervise the pilot and that the pilot was negligent by flying into heavy fog when he should have aborted the flight. The amount of the settlement was not disclosed.

The owners have countersued two FAA air traffic controllers, saying the crash was caused by a series of their erroneous acts and/or omissions. That part of the suit is still pending.

A February, 2021 report by the National Transportation Safety Board blamed pilot error for the crash. The NTSB also faulted the owners for inadequate review and oversight of safety matters. The NTSB concluded that, though air traffic controllers failed to report the loss of radar contact and radar communication with the flight, which was inconsistent with their procedures, that did not contribute to the crash.

Vanessa Bryant settles wrongful death lawsuit over crash that killed Kobe, daughter, others

Terms of the confidential deal weren’t disclosed.

www.syracuse.com