Joe Bryant, the father of Kobe Bryant, has passed away at the age of 69 on Tuesday, July 16, 2024. This is according to an official statement from Pennsylvania’s La Salle University, where Bryant played and coached. Also known as Joseph Washington “Jellybean” Bryant, the former NBA player for the Philadelphia 76ers, San Diego Clippers, and Houston Rockets coached in the United States and internationally. Here’s what we know so far about how Joe Bryant passed away.
What is Joe Bryant’s cause of death?
No official cause of death has been given yet for Joe Bryant’s passing. That said, the head coach at La Salle, Fran Dunphy, said that he had suffered a massive stroke in a statement to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Joe Bryant starred at La Salle University before being the first-round draft selection by the Golden State Warriors in 1975. He was later acquired by the Philadelphia 76ers where he played for four seasons. His team, which included Julius Erving and George McGinnis, reached the 1977 NBA Finals, though they lost to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Afterwards, Bryant played for three seasons with the San Diego Clippers from 1979 to 1982 and then one season for the Houston Rockets. He then played in Europe, eight years for Italy and another year for France until he ended his professional career in 1992.
From there, he became an assistant coach at La Salle University, though he resigned after three years in 1996 to help his son Kobe Bryant enter the NBA. In 2005, he became the head coach for the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks in 2005, 2006, and 2011, reaching the Conference Final in 2006. He also coached the Tokyo Apache in Japan from 2005 to 2009 as well as other teams including Sebastiani Rieti in Italy (2009), Levanga Hokkaido in Japan (2010), Bangkok Cobras in Thailand (2012), and Rising Fukuoka in Japan (2015).
