Kobe Bryant and wife Vanessa had an agreement: Never fly on a helicopter together

Kobe Bryant and his wife, Vanessa, reportedly had an agreement that they would never fly in a helicopter at the same time, a revelation that comes days after Kobe and his daughter, Gianna, were killed in a helicopter accident.

The information comes from an anonymous source close to the Bryant family, and was reported by People. The source did not, however, detail the specific reasons for the arrangement.

In hindsight, it seems possible that the purpose was to ensure that, if tragedy struck, at least one parent would remain to raise the children. That parent is now Vanessa, who still has three daughters to watch over after the loss of her husband and child.

Kobe Bryant regularly used his helicopter to travel across the Los Angeles area, after realizing that he could not adequately balance family obligations and career demands while spending so much time stuck in LA traffic.

"I was sitting in traffic and I wound up missing like a school play," Bryant explained in 2018. "I had to figure out a way where I could still train and focus on the craft but still not compromise family time. So that's when I looked into helicopters, to be able to get down and back in 15 minutes and that's when it started."

Bryant retired from the NBA after the 2016 NBA season as one of the greatest players of all time. He won five NBA championships, was named NBA MVP one time, NBA Finals MVP two times, and made the All-Star team 18 times.

In retirement, he coached Gianna's youth basketball team. Gianna was showing flashes of greatness and an uncanny resemblance to her father, even at the young age of 13. The two, along with teammates and other parents, were flying to a game when their helicopter crashed.

Vanessa Bryant issued a public statement Wednesday.