Joe Bryant, Former Men's Basketball Star, Remembered by La Salle in Mourning
The individual in the image is Joe Bryant, as seen on goexplorers.com.
The passing of Joe "Jellybean" Bryant, a legendary figure in men's basketball, has brought sadness to the La Salle University Athletics community as he passed away on Monday morning.
Bryant, the father of the late basketball legend Kobe Bryant, was a standout player at La Salle University from 1973 to 1975. He played a crucial role in helping the team win the 1975 East Coast Conference Championship, which led to their participation in the NCAA Tournament.
According to John Cox, La Salle men's basketball assistant coach and nephew of Bryant, he is devastated by the unexpected passing of his uncle. Bryant was not only a basketball legend in Philadelphia, but also someone who Cox greatly looked up to since childhood. The legacy he has left behind at La Salle and in the local basketball community will be remembered for a long time.
In 1974 and 1975, Bryant was chosen as a First Team All-Big 5 member for the second time. Under his leadership, La Salle achieved a record of 22-7 in 1975 and won the Sugar Bowl Classic Championship, where he was honored as the tournament MVP. With their success, the team rose to No. 7 in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll, earning La Salle's first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1968. Bryant is currently ranked 7th in career rebounding average (11.9), 9th in scoring average (20.7), and 10th in career field goal percentage (48.6).
During his tenure with the Explorers, the 6-9 forward managed to rack up a total of 1,188 points. His impressive performance on the court led to him receiving National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) All-District recognition twice, in 1974 as a member of the Third Team and in 1975 as part of the First Team. Following the 1975 National Basketball Association (NBA) Draft, Bryant was selected as the 14th overall pick by the Golden State Warriors, but was eventually traded to the Philadelphia 76ers, his hometown team.
From 1975 to 1979, Bryant was a member of the Sixers in the NBA for four years. He then spent three years with the San Diego Clippers (1979-82). After his final season with the Houston Rockets, he went on to play professionally in France and Italy for nine years. Throughout his NBA career, he played in 606 games and had an average of 8.7 points and 4.0 rebounds.
After his time as a player, Bryant held a variety of coaching positions, including serving as an assistant for the Explorers' team from 1993 to 1996. He also had two separate periods as the head coach for the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association.
In 1981, Bryant became a member of the Big 5 Hall of Fame.
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