Kobe Bryant died in a helicopter crash in Calabasas Sunday morning, ABC 7 in Los Angeles confirms. TMZ first reported the news.
Bryant played his entire 20-year career for the Los Angeles Lakers and won five NBA championships. He was named Finals MVP twice. Bryant was 41.
The Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department responded to reports of a helicopter that crashed into a hillside and caught fire, NBC Los Angeles reported. The crash was called in at 9:47 a.m. local time, per the report, and flames that spread a quarter acre were put out by 10:30.