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Joe Bryant

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Joe Bryant
Bryant coaching Levanga Hokkaido in 2010
Personal information
Born (1954-10-19) October 19, 1954 (age 70)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
High schoolJohn Bartram
(Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
CollegeLa Salle (1973–1975)
NBA draft1975: 1st round, 14th overall pick
Selected by the Golden State Warriors
Playing career1975–1992
PositionPower forward / Center
Number23, 22
Coaching career2003–present
Career history
As player:
1975–1979Philadelphia 76ers
1979–1982San Diego Clippers
1982–1983Houston Rockets
1984–1986AMG Sebastiani Rieti
1986–1987Standa Reggio Calabria
1987–1989Olimpia Pistoia
1989–1991Reggiana
1991–1992FC Mulhouse Basket
As coach:
1992–1993Akiba Hebrew Academy
2003–2004Las Vegas Rattlers
2004–2005Boston Frenzy
2006–2007Los Angeles Sparks
2007–2009Tokyo Apache
2010–2011Levanga Hokkaido
2011Los Angeles Sparks
2012Bangkok Cobras
2013Chang Thailand Slammers
2015Rizing Fukuoka
Career NBA and Serie A statistics
Points12,584 (14.8 ppg)
Rebounds4,012 (4.7 rpg)
Assists1,595 (1.9 apg)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference

Joseph Washington Bryant (born October 19, 1954), nicknamed "Jellybean",[1] is an American former professional basketball player, current coach, and the father of the late Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant. Bryant was the head coach of the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks from August 22, 2005 until April 4, 2007.[2] He returned to that position for the remainder of the 2011 WNBA season after Jennifer Gillom was fired by the Los Angeles Sparks on July 10, 2011. Bryant has also coached in Italy, Japan, and Thailand.

Professional career

After starring at La Salle University, Bryant, a 6'9" (2.07 m) forward, was drafted in the first round by the Golden State Warriors in 1975.[3] Before the season started, though, he was dealt to his hometown team, the Philadelphia 76ers, with whom he played for four seasons. His 1976–77 Sixers team, featuring NBA all-stars Julius Erving, Doug Collins, and George McGinnis, reached the NBA finals, but eventually lost to the Portland Trail Blazers 4 games to 2.[4] Bryant headed back to the West Coast when he was traded by the 76ers[5] to the San Diego Clippers, for whom he played from 1979 to 1982. In the first game of the 1979–80 season at home in San Diego, Bryant slam dunked on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, however, despite that and a 46-point effort by Bryant's Sixer/Clippers teammate World B. Free (then known as Lloyd Free), the Lakers won the game off a game winning sky hook by Abdul-Jabbar.

After a final NBA season with the Houston Rockets in 1983, Bryant headed to Europe, playing seven seasons in Italy with clubs of the Italian A1 League and the Italian A2 League. He played with the Italian clubs AMG Sebastiani Rieti (1984–86), Viola Reggio Calabria (1986–87), Pistoia (1987–89), and Reggio Emilia (1989–91). He twice had 53-point games with Pistoia, in the 1987–88 season.

Bryant continued to play into his fifties, appearing in several games for the Boston Frenzy of the fledgling American Basketball Association.

Coaching career

Bryant's first coaching position after returning from Europe was in 1992–1993 as the head coach of the women's varsity team at Akiba Hebrew Academy in Lower Merion, Pennsylvania.[6] In June 1993, he left Akiba and accepted an assistant coach position at his alma-mater, La Salle University.[7] Bryant served as coach for the Diablos in the 2003 Season of SlamBall.

On August 22, 2005, Bryant, who had been serving as the assistant coach to the Los Angeles Sparks team in the Women's National Basketball Association, was named Head Coach of the Sparks, succeeding previous coach (and former 76ers teammate) Henry Bibby. During the 2006 season, he led the Sparks to a 25-9 record and a Conference Finals berth. However, in April 2007, Bryant was replaced as Sparks head coach by Michael Cooper, who had previously helmed the team in 1999–2004.

Bryant spent the 2007–08 season coaching the Tokyo Apache in Japan's professional basketball league the Japanese BJ League.

On July 3, 2009 he signed a contract with his first Italian club, Sebastiani Rieti.[8]

In January 2012, he became coach of the Bangkok Cobras in the ASEAN Basketball League (ABL).[9] He also served as the head coach of Rizing Fukuoka of the bj league.[10]

Head coaching record

Legend
Regular season G Games coached W Games won L Games lost W–L % Win–loss %
Playoffs PG Playoff games PW Playoff wins PL Playoff losses PW–L % Playoff win–loss %
Team Year G W L W–L% Finish PG PW PL PW–L% Result
Tokyo Apache 2005-06 40 20 20 .500 3rd - - - – -
Tokyo Apache 2006-07 40 12 28 .300 8th - - - – -
Tokyo Apache 2007-08 44 27 17 .614 2nd in Eastern 2 1 1 .500 Runners-up
Tokyo Apache 2008-09 52 33 19 .635 2nd in Eastern 4 3 1 .750 Runners-up
Rera Kamuy Hokkaido 2010-11 22 6 16 .273 Fired - - - – -
Rizing Fukuoka 2014-15 32 9 23 .281 9th in Western - - - – -

Personal life

In 1975, Bryant married Pam Cox, sister of former NBA player Chubby Cox. Bryant's son, Kobe, won five NBA championships with the Los Angeles Lakers. Bryant also has two daughters, Sharia and Shaya. Through his wife Pam, he is the uncle of professional basketball player John Cox IV.

On January 26, 2020, Kobe Bryant died in a helicopter crash, along with Joe Bryant's 13-year-old granddaughter Gianna and seven other people.[11][12]

References

  1. ^ Martinez, Nico (January 29, 2020). "Kobe's Father, Joe Bryant, Seen For The First Time Since Son and Granddaughter's Death". fadeawayworld.net. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
  2. ^ "ESPN.com – WNBA – Bryant out, Cooper Back in as Sparks Coach". ESPN.
  3. ^ "The evolution of Kobe Bryant – Ian Thomsen – SI.com". CNN. 2008-06-04. Retrieved 2010-05-06.
  4. ^ https://www.basketball-reference.com
  5. ^ Bryant was traded for what eventually turned out to the first pick in the 1986 NBA draft, although prior to the draft the 76ers had traded the pick to the Cleveland Cavaliers, who selected Brad Daugherty. [1]
  6. ^ Charry, Rob (2004-02-27). "Coach Bryant? Akiba Once Led by Kobe's Dad". The Forward. The Forward. Retrieved 2009-03-24.
  7. ^ "Bryant Returns to LaSalle as Assistant". Philadelphia Daily News. Philadelphia Daily News. 1993-06-24.
  8. ^ Maffioli, Luca (2009-07-03). "Joe Bryant nuovo coach di Rieti" (in Italian). Sport Blog. Archived from the original on 2010-09-27. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  9. ^ Bangkok team hires Kobe’s dad Archived 2012-01-13 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ Bryant out as Rizing Fukuoka coach
  11. ^ "Basketball great Bryant dies in helicopter crash". BBC News. 2020-01-26. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
  12. ^ "Kobe Bryant, daughter among 9 dead in helicopter crash in Southern California". ABC News. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
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