Dearica Hamby still smiles at the memory of Kobe Bryant sitting courtside at WNBA games. She had met him years ago. He came to see her old team, the Las Vegas Aces, play all the time. “I think one of the first things he told me was that I could play defense,

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver issued the following statement on the 5-year anniversary of Kobe Bryant’s passing: “Kobe Bryant continues to serve as an inspiration to aspiring and current NBA and WNBA players, young athletes playing at all levels and those who are motivated solely by his relentless pursuit of excellence.

Somehow, with all that has happened between that awful moment and now, it remains surreal and hard to believe that it was five years ago today that Kobe Bean Bryant, along with his daughter Gianna and seven others,

Even with all of 2020's tragedies, the events of Jan. 26 still devastate. On the anniversary of that horrific crash, we remember Kobe Bryant, daughter Gianna and the other seven souls lost.

Looking back on Kobe and Gianna Bryant's lives and legacies before they were tragically killed in a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020 in California.