A wave of tributes poured in online to commemorate the life of the late Kobe Bryant, whose 2020 death shook the sports world.

Five years after the tragic passing of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna Bryant, the sports world paid tribute to them.

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.

Bryant died on Jan. 26, 2020, when a helicopter crashed into the side of a mountain in Calabasas, Calif., and began burning. He and the other passengers were killed on impact. Bryant was 41 years old when he died. He was born on Aug. 23, 1978, and died eight months before what would have been his 42nd birthday.

The impact of Bryant’s career, and the ‘Mamba Mentality,’ carry on in the kind of way that almost makes you forget that he’s gone.

Today marks the five-year anniversary of Kobe Bryant's tragic death, a loss that still resonates deeply within the NBA community and beyond. On Jan. 26, 2020, the basketball legend, his daughter Gianna,

Kobe Bryant, one of the finest basketball players in history, had died at age 41 along with his daughter Gianna and seven others in a helicopter

On Jan. 26, 2020, NBA legend Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others were killed when their helicopter plunged into a steep hillside in dense morning fog in Southern California; the former Lakers star was 41.

The three-part docuseries chronicling the life of late NBA great Kobe Bryant premieres on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025 at 9 p.m. ET.

"Kobe: The Making of a Legend" is a three-part CNN docuseries that launches Saturday, a day before the fifth anniversary of the NBA legend's death.

On Sunday, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver released a statement marking five years since Bryant's death. ATLANTA — Sunday marks a somber milestone for the basketball and wider sports worlds, as it has been five years since Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others died in a helicopter crash in Los Angeles.

Survived by his wife Vanessa and daughters Natalia, Bianka and Capri, Kobe's contribution to basketball is immeasurable. Beyond the five NBA championships he won for the Los Angeles Lakers, the greatest athletes of all sports continue to live by his "Mamba Mentality" mindset.