Firefighters work the scene of the helicopter crash in Calabasas, Calif., where nine people, including former NBA star Kobe Bryant, died, Jan. 26, 2019.
AP Photo / Mark J. Terrill
Following the death of Kobe Bryant, AP’s weeklong body of work captured the breadth, depth and complexity of a life that went far beyond basketball. Even in news cycles crowded with coronavirus and impeachment stories, the crash that killed Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter and seven others was at or near the top of AP’s most-read and downloaded content for much of the week. In a sterling effort by numerous staffers in all formats, the work of sportswriters Tim Reynolds and Greg Beacham, reporters Stefanie Dazio and Amy Taxin, and photographers Mark Terrill and Richard Vogel stood out.
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A vendor sells flowers to Kobe Bryant fans in front of a giant electronic billboard featuring the NBA star near the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles, Jan. 30, 2020. People wearing Kobe Bryant jerseys, hats, shoes and other gear continued to arrive by the thousands at the downtown arena where Bryant had made basketball history.
AP Photo / Richard Vogel
A fan pays respects at a mural in a downtown Los Angeles alley depicting Kobe Bryant after word that the former Lakers star died in a helicopter crash, along with his daughter Gianna and seven others, Jan. 26, 2020.
AP Photo / Matt Hartman
Kobe Bryant fans grieve at a small memorial at the entrance of Bryant’s Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Jan. 26, 2020. The retired NBA star died with his daughter and seven other people in a helicopter crash that morning.
AP Photo / Richard Vogel
Los Angeles Lakers fans, from left, Alex Fultz, Eddy Rivas and Rene Alfaro react to the death of former NBA player Kobe Bryant outside of the Staples Center in Los Angeles prior to the 62nd annual Grammy Awards, Jan. 26, 2020.
AP Photo / Chris Pizzello
Los Angeles Lakers guard Quinn Cook looks up toward the retired jerseys of Kobe Bryant during the national anthem prior to the team’s NBA basketball game against the Houston Rockets in Los Angeles, Feb. 6, 2020.
AP Photo / Mark J. Terrill