PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Joe Bryant, Philadelphia basketball royalty and the father of late basketball icon Kobe Bryant, has died at the age of 69.
La Salle University Athletics confirmed his death on Tuesday. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that he recently suffered a stroke.
Nicknamed “Jellybean,” Joe Bryant played eight seasons in the NBA, including four for the Sixers from 1975 to 1979. Before that, he played at La Salle and Bartram High School.
After his NBA career, Joe Bryant played overseas before returning home to watch his son, Kobe, rise to global stardom.
In January 2020, Kobe Bryant, his daughter, Gigi, and seven others died in a helicopter crash in California.