Kobe Bryant And Daughter Killed In Chopper Crash; Grammy Tributes To Kobe Bryant.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN ANCHOR: -- more than 57 million people locked down in China and unprecedented response from Xi Jinping who warns the coronavirus outbreak is accelerating. Good morning. This is Early Start. I'm Alison Kosik.</s>LAURA JARRETT, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Laura Jarrett. About 30 minutes past the hour here in New York. We begin with the death of Kobe Bryant, a heart breaking tragedy for basketball fans and all who admired excellence. Bryant, one of the games all-time greats, and his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, among nine people killed when their helicopter crashed into a hillside Sunday morning in Calabasas, California. Outside the Staples Center in Los Angeles, thousands gathered numbed by the news. Kobe thrilled Lakers fans for two decades leading the iconic franchise to five championships.</s>KOSIK: His stunning death shaking the league he elevated. Lakers superstar LeBron James distraught as he exited the team plane. High praise from Lakers legend Magic Johnson hailing Bryant as the greatest Laker of all-time. Sportscaster Bob Costas remembering an athlete wise beyond his years.</s>BOB COSTAS, AWARD-WINNING SPORTSCASTER: The first time I met and spoke with him when he was 18 years old, I was struck by how broad his view of things was. But sports is one of the very few avenues in life where people peak in terms of their ability long before most of us reach any sort of emotional maturity. You're a veteran when you're 27, 28 years old. Whatever happened, it's relatively meaningless between Kobe and Shaq some kind of spat with athletic egos involved and all the rest that they've long since have reconciled. They're young guys. They're guys in their 20's but the eyes of the world are on them.</s>JARRETT: You heard Costas mentioned Shaquille O'Neal there. Well, Bryant's Lakers teammate says this, "Kobe was so much more than an athlete, he was a family man. That was what we had most in common." Friends say Kobe was so proud of his daughter's love for the game, and he was not only -- he was not the only Bryant who could lead with his shoulder. He leaves behind his wife, Vanessa, and three other daughters. The youngest just 7 months old.</s>KOSIK: Among the other victims, local college basketball coach, John Altobelli, his wife, Keri, and daughter, Alyssa. For more on what may have caused the crash, here's CNN's Nick Watt in Calabasas, California.</s>NICK WATT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Laura and Alison, this is an inaccessible crash site, we're told. And, you know, the first thing that first responders had to deal with was a brush fire ignited by the helicopter hitting that hillside. Once that was under control, they secured the scene. The FAA was quickly here putting a cordon around and an air cordon, a ceiling so that that crash site could be preserved as best it could be. Now, the coroner's office has been involved in trying to remove the remains. They will then be involved in the process of identifying all the victims and that they say could take a few days. The NTSB, the FAA, helped by local law enforcement, they will of course examine the route of that helicopter. They'll look into its maintenance record, they'll look into the record of the pilot, and they will also be looking into the weather. People around here tell us it was very, very foggy Sunday morning when this helicopter crashed. And in fact, we heard from the L.A. police department that they had in fact grounded their fleet of helicopters Sunday morning because the visibility was just not good enough. But listen, for the people here in L.A., that's down the line, that's secondary. The headline, the pain that they are feeling is that Kobe Bryant, this Lakers great, this towering figure of Los Angeles who helped kids, boys, girls, young athletes, Kobe Bryant is gone age 41, and that is what the people of Los Angeles are just trying to come to grips with. Laura, Alison, back to you.</s>JARRETT: Nick, thank you so much for that. There were so many moving tributes to Kobe Bryant around the NBA and beyond on Sunday. Andy Scholes joins us now. And, Andy, you know, for the players, I just can't even imagine what it must have been like last night to have to go out just receiving this news.</s>ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yes, Laura, so many players just in tears, you know, before their game, during their game, after their game. Unfortunately, you notice it can be one of those moments, you know, that you never forget, you know, where you were, what you were doing when you heard this news about Kobe Bryant. And you know, of course, tributes just pouring in all over the country as this news spread. At NBA games, arenas around the league holding a moment of silence before the game, then the Spurs and Raptors both taking 24-second violations at the beginning of the game in Kobe's honor. Kobe, of course, wore the number 24 at the end of his career, and multiple players around the league writing on their shoes tributes to Kobe. Hawks star Trae Young meanwhile, he usually wears number 11, he wore the number 8 to start his game in honor of Kobe. Kobe wore 8 at the beginning of his Lakers career. There were many other tearful tributes. Here are Kobe's friends Dwayne Wade and Clippers Coach Doc Rivers.</s>DWAYNE WADE, FORMER NBA PLAYER: We'll forever, forever miss you, man. You're a legend, you're an icon, you're a father, you're a husband, you're a son, you're a brother, you're a friend. Thank you for being my friend. I love you, brother.</s>DOC RIVERS, LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS COACH: The news is just devastating to everybody who knew him, who've known him a long time. And, you know, he just -- means a lot to me, obviously. You know, he was such a great opponent, you know. It's what you want in sports.</s>SCHOLES: Yes, and Kobe's old running mate, Shaquille O'Neal, also emotional. He posted, "There's no words to express the pain I'm going through with this tragedy of losing my niece, Gigi, and my brother, Kobe Bryant. I love you and you will be missed." Michael Jordan saying, "I am in shock over the tragic news of Kobe's and Gianna's passing. Words can't describe the pain I'm feeling. I loved Kobe, he was a little brother to me. We used to talk often, and I will miss those conversations very much." The Lakers returning from a road trip and LeBron James could be seen very emotional out there once he got off the plane. He had just passed Kobe for third on the all-time scoring list. And Mavericks owner, Mark Cuban, meanwhile, he released a statement saying that no Mavericks players ever going to wear the number 24 again in honor of Kobe Bryant. Laura, I would expect maybe similar teams to follow suit as well.</s>JARRETT: Yes. And I know you just did an interview with him just 12 days ago. It's just stunning. Andy, thank you so much.</s>SCHOLES: All right.</s>KOSIK: Republicans were confident they could size-up witnesses at the Trump impeachment trial, but new revelations from John Bolton are casting serious doubt. We'll tell you why.