Kobe Bryant 'wanted to die young and be immortalized', says close friend Tracy McGrady
Basketball legend Kobe Bryant had reportedly told his close friends that he 'wanted to die young and be immortalized', NBA Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady shared.
The two stars had bonded when their careers had kicked off with McGrady sharing that Bryant, 41, had helped him survive his first few games of the season. McGrady who was seen breaking down in tears spoke to ESPN and shared, "I'm devastated, just like everybody else. I know this sounds crazy, but he spoke this, he used to say all the time 'I wanna die young, I wanna be immortalized and have my career be better than Michael Jordan and I want to die young. And I just thought he was so crazy for saying that. And when I got the news yesterday I just could not believe it."
Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, 13 were amongst those nine killed in a fatal helicopter crash that took place on Sunday, January 26. He is survived by his 37-year-old wife Vanessa, and their daughters — 17-year-old Natalia, three-year-old Bianka and Capri, born in June 2019, and his parents and sisters Sharia and Shaya.
McGrady added that Bryant's mentality changed when he had his children. "We were reunited because of our kids and coaching our kids. I go up and I give Gigi a hug and tell her 'go out there and kill' and she was like 'don't worry about that, I got this'. And she was special, she was built like Kobe. Just to watch her play was like watching a young Kobe. It just looked like her dad out there."
The helicopter was being flown by Ara Zobayan, 50, when it reportedly dropped 500 feet in 15 seconds and killed all those on board near Calabasas in California.
