Kobe Bryant did not have any direct connections to the Miami Hurricanes athletic teams that were known publicly. His death on Sunday in a helicopter accident in Los Angeles that also claimed the life of his 13-year-old daughter had a profound impact on the U.

The outpouring of tributes to Kobe Bryant following his death, that of his 13-year old daughter Gianna and seven other people in a helicopter crash on Sunday transcended sports. Miami Hurricanes football alums Brian Monroe and Rashad Butler were hosting on 790 The Ticket in Miami and delivered the news.

That is how I found out. Monroe was able to keep it together. The tragedy was initially reported on the Twitter page for TMZ. Monroe reported the TMZ information to the audience listening to the ticket. Sunday, January 26, 2020, will be a day we all remember where we were and how we found out about Kobe Bryant’s death.

Monroe and Butler had a surreal show on Sunday. They debated on Sunday morning who was the better player, Kobe or LeBron James. Monroe went with LeBron and Butler with Kobe. It was the kind of harmless fun that sports talk and radio should be about. Less than three hours later they were eulogizing Kobe.

The outpouring of support from the Miami Hurricanes community spanned more than the basketball team and one country. The multinational Men’s basketball team was able to put their blowout loss from yesterday in perspective. Senior guard Dejan Vasiljevic who was born in Calgary but grew up in Australia paid tribute.

Absolutely!!! @B_Monroe15 and I were concluding our 4 hour broadcast when the news broke. Just segments before we were in a spirited debate over him and Lebron James. https://t.co/0Fvcrw67aK — Guy With The One Dimple!!! (@RashadJamaalB) January 26, 2020

Bryant began his career with the NBA at a crossroads. Black Mamba was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets 13th overall in the 1996 NBA Draft. Bryant was named first-team all-rookie with the Los Angeles Lakers where he spent his entire 20-year career. Bryant came into the league as legends were at the end of their careers.