Skip to content

Rick Fox: Incorrect death reports 'shook a lot of people in my life'

Ezra Shaw / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Former Los Angeles Lakers forward Rick Fox was the subject of inaccurate death reports this past Sunday when a tragic helicopter crash took the lives of nine individuals, including Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna.

Erroneous reports claiming Fox was one of the passengers on board circulated on social media in the aftermath of the incident. The 13-year NBA veteran reflected on the impact those stories had on the people closest to him.

"My family went through, in the midst of all of this, something I couldn't have imagined them experiencing," Fox said during Tuesday's TNT broadcast that paid tribute to the late NBA great. "A city is mourning, a family is mourning. We’re all mourning, and I’m glad that’s over with, but it was hard to deal with because it shook a lot of people in my life."

Fox was Bryant's teammate for seven seasons and helped the Lakers win three consecutive championships in the early 2000s.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox