Joe Bryant, Kobe Bryant’s dad, dead at 69

( NYPost )

Former NBA player Joe Bryant, the father of the late Kobe Bryant, has died, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.

He was 69.

The elder Bryant suffered a massive stroke recently, La Salle head coach Fran Dunphy told the Inquirer Tuesday.

Bryant’s death comes more than four years after his son and his granddaughter, Gigi Bryant, died in a horrific helicopter crash in California on Jan. 26, 2020.

Bryant, a forward out of La Salle, was a first-round pick, 14th overall, by the Warriors in the 1975 draft.

He went on to play eight NBA seasons for the 76ers, then-San Diego Clippers and Rockets before he took his talents overseas, having played for several teams in Italy.