I have a lot of things to unpack in this week’s column that will sort of jump to four different topics so bear with me.

On Sunday morning, word broke that a helicopter carrying 9 people crashed in Calabasas California while on the way to a basketball game featuring Kobe Bryant’s team that included his 13-year-old daughter Gianna.

There were no survivors.

The other passengers on the plane included Alyssa Altobelli (13), who also played on the team, her parent’s John (56) and Kerri, Christina Mauser (38), who was hand picked by Bryant to be the team’s assistant coach, Sarah Chester and her middle-school aged daughter Payton and pilot Ara Zobayan who was Bryant’s trusted pilot.

A news report says Zobayan was the only pilot Bryant trusted to fly him.

TOPIC 1

As a journalist, the worst part of this for me was seeing how many different news agencies were simply sending out the first thing they heard rather than checking to make sure it was factual.

With social media now as accessible as ever, news sources seem more interested in reporting first than reporting accurately and that is something that’s extremely disheartening.

There were multiple times when I was scrolling through my twitter feed yesterday where different news sources were reporting different updates and both turned out to be wrong.

When reporting on news like this, I feel it’s paramount that news agencies take the time the get the facts right before they potentially report false information and make things worse.

TOPIC 2

I want to take some time to remember Kobe’s legacy a little bit as well.

Bryant received countless accolades during his time in the NBA.

He was 5 time NBA Champion, 2 time NBA Finals MVP, League MVP in 2008, an 18 time All Star, a 15 time All-NBA Team member, a 12 time NBA All-Defense member, is the only player in league history two have 2 separate numbers retired by the same team and finished his career with 33,643 points, which was third all time until LeBron James passed him Saturday night.

The most memorable thing about Bryant however, was his work ethic that came to be known around he sports world as his “Mamba Mentality” that so many other athletes worked towards.

Yesterday during the NBA games that occurred, many different forms of tribute were seen.

Teams began their games with 24-second shot clock violations and 8-second backcourt violations in tribute to Bryant who wore the numbers 24 and 8 during his career.

Trae Young, a point guard for the Atlanta Hawks, changed his jersey number to 8 at the start of his game yesterday as tribute.

The Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has already announced that no player will ever wear the number 24 on their team again.

Messages of support were seen and heard from outside the basketball world as well.

Members of Hockey royalty like Wayne Gretzky, many different actors who knew Bryant from time spent in LA and soccer stars from around the world also paid tribute to Bryant along with the millions of fans around the world who grew up idolizing him.

While Bryant’s legacy isn’t all positive, it’s clear that he impacted so many lives with his own.

Even looking back to when I was in high school playing basketball, every so often my teammates and I would yell out “Kobe!” while taking a shot in practice.

Kids all over are throwing crumpled paper into a garbage can doing the same thing.

His legacy is massive.

One of the main comments over the last day is how great of a father he was.

His constant support for his daughters was seen so often and his loss won’t be forgotten anytime soon.

TOPIC 3

Bryant’s oldest daughter Gianna was also killed in the crash.

The bond that Kobe had with his daughter was amazing.

Countless videos emerged of Bryant and Gianna playing basketball together and sitting courtside at games.

One of the last videos shot of Kobe and Gianna shows them on the sideline engaged in a conversation about what they’re seeing and dissecting the game they both love.

Another video that received thousands of views was of Bryant being interviewed by Jimmy Kimmel.

During the interview, Kimmel asked Bryant if Gianna wanted to play in the WNBA.

Bryant’s response showed the love he had for her and the potential and drive she had to succeed.

“The best thing that happens is when we go out and fans would come up to me and she’ll be standing next to me. They’ll be like ‘You’ve gotta have a boy, you and Vanessa gotta have a boy. You gotta have somebody to carry on your tradition, the legacy.’ She’s like, ‘Oy, I got this.’ I’m like ‘That’s right. Yes, you do. You do got this.’”

People will never have the chance to see Gianna out on the court anymore and that’s a loss that also hurts.

TOPIC 4

While the loss of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna is the most recognized across the world, it’s important to realize and remember that there are eight other families whose lives were shattered.

Eight families who lost loved ones who weren’t talked about for the rest of the day, who didn’t have special all day newscasts discussing the loss they’re feeling.

Matt Mauser, husband of Christina and father of 3 children had this to say after the crash.

“I got three small kids and am trying to figure out how to navigate life with three kids and no mom.”

While it may be understandable people resonate with the loss of someone famous and instantly recognized, it’s immensely important that the lives of the 7 other passengers we know less about be remembered too.

Kobe and Gianna may have the name recognition, but let’s make sure to recognize the other’s who leave behind families and friends as well.