It has officially been 1 year since the passing of Kobe Bryant, Gianna Bryant, The Altobelli Family, Christina Mauser, Sarah, and Payton Chester, and helicopter pilot Ara Zobayan in a freak accident. They were on the way to the Mamba Academy, Kobe Bryant school for basketball when they crashed. It was a day that shook the world. The basketball community is still in shock and pain from this experience, as Kobe was an icon for almost everyone.

Everyone continues to mourn and celebrate and honor the life of Kobe Bryant. The NBA changed the title of the All-Star Game MVP to the Kobe Bryant All-Star Game MVP. He also will be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame this year. Although he is gone his legacy continues to live on.

Kobe was most known for his hard and determined work ethic. All basketball players refer to it as having the “Mamba Mentality”. Kobe no matter what always wanted to win and be successful. He spent hours and hours of relentless training to become the best.

This year, teams tried to stay away from mentioning and honoring him on the anniversary of the crash out of respect for Vanessa Bryant who requested teams try to stay away from mentioning the accident. ESPN specials have been released to document the day that Kobe died. They include many NBA players talking and sharing the experiences they had that day. It’s a tough watch to see all these players still mourning a year later. Although it has been a slow and painful year since this has happened we will never forget Kobe Bryant and his legacy. He will live on in the basketball world.