Joe Bryant, the father of late NBA legend, Kobe Bryant has died at the age of 69. The former basketball star and coach reportedly suffered a “massive stroke” recently. La Salle University, where Joe Bryant played and eventually returned as an assistant coach in 1993, confirmed the news on social media.
La Salle head coach Fran Dunphy told The Philadelphia Inquirer on Tuesday that Bryant passed away after recently suffering a massive stroke.
“We are saddened to announce the passing of La Salle basketball great Joe Bryant,” the statement posted to X read. “Joe played for the Explorers from 1973-75 and was a member of our coaching staff from 1993-96. He was a beloved member of the Explorer family and will be dearly missed.” Joe Bryant’s death comes four and a half years after his son Kobe, 41 at the time, and granddaughter Gigi, 13, lost their lives in a tragic helicopter crash.
Joe played eight seasons in the NBA for the 76ers, the San Diego Clippers, and the Houston Rocket, before moving overseas and playing in Italy and France. The Bryant family moved back to the U.S. when Kobe was 13, settling back in the Philadelphia area where Kobe went on to his nationally-recognized high school career at Lower Merion.
He started coaching basketball after his playing days, both internationally and at home, including a one-year stint as the head coach for the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks.
Along with Kobe, Joe and his wife Pam Bryant also have two daughters, Sharia and Shaya.
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