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Kobe Fans Gather at Staples Center After Basketball Legend Dies in Helicopter Crash

Fans of Kobe Bryant paid tribute to the basketball legend after he and eight others died when a helicopter crashed and caught fire on a hillside in the Calabasas area in Los Angeles County, California, on January 26.

TMZ has reported that Bryant’s daughter Gianna Maria Onore was also on the helicopter and died in the crash.

This video shows fans outside the Staples Center in Los Angeles applauding as Bryant’s photo appeared on a screen outside the building.

Tributes also poured in online from celebrities, politicians, and sports starts.

US President Donald Trump called Bryant a “basketball great” and said the crash was “terrible news.”

Bryant’s former teammate Pau Gasol said he was “beyond devastated,” while the NBA Player’s Association released a statement saying it was “stunned and devastated” by his death. Credit: Chiney Ogwumike via Storyful