the company announced Thursday. The two will also no longer serve on the company's board of directors effective immediately.
Shares of WWE plunged as much as 14% to $53.30 in extended trading after the company announced its high-level personnel decisions.
Frank A. Riddick III, a longtime WWE board member will be the interim Chief Financial Officer and will report to WWE chairman & CEO Vince McMahon.
"I would like to thank George and Michelle for their 10+ years of service and contributions to the organization,”McMahon said in an official release. “I am grateful for all that was accomplished during their tenure, but the Board and I decided a change was necessary as we have different views on how best to achieve our strategic priorities moving forward.
“We have a deep team of talented, experienced and committed executives across the organization, and the Board and I have great confidence in our collective abilities to create compelling content, engage our global fanbase across platforms, increase revenues, and drive shareholder value.”
Variety reported in July 2019 that ratings for WWE's two main shows, "Monday Night Raw" and "SmackDown Live," had fallen around 20% each compared to the beginning of 2018. "SmackDown" moved to FOX in Oct. 2019, the beginning of a five-year deal with the network.
Chris Paul and Russell Westbrook headline the All-Star Game reserves chosen by the league's coaches. Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert, Brandon Ingram, Bam Adebayo Jayson Tatum and Domantas Sabonis were first-time selections.
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Lakers executives, including Jeanie Buss and Linda Rambis, gathered at the team's facility on Sunday following the news of Bryant's death, according to the LA Times. Pelinka reportedly also spent time on Sunday with Bryant’s widow, Vanessa.
An 18-time All-Star and 11-time All-NBA first-teamer, Bryant led the Lakers to five NBA championships and scored 33,643 points in his 20-year NBA career. He retired after the 2015-16 season, having spent his entire career with the Lakers. The franchise retired his No. 8 and No. 24 jersey numbers in December 2017.
Bryant, his daughter and seven other people died suddenly in a helicopter crash on Sunday. Orange Coast College baseball coach John Altobelli, his daughter Alyssa and wife Keri were also killed, along with Sarah and Payton Chester, assistant coach Christina Mauser and pilot Ara Zobayan.
Rob Pelinka said the legacies of his 'best friend' Kobe Bryant and 'sweet goddaughter' Gianna "will live on -- and gain even more power and influence."
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"The simple answer is that we are in the middle of translating the rest of our policy plans into Spanish, but haven't completed that task," Buttigieg's campaign said.
Coach Frank Vogel says the Lakers have been brought "closer together" following the tragic death of Kobe Bryant and eight others Sunday and that getting back to basketball will be "therapeutic."
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Kawhi Leonard has a Los Angeles residence but has stayed at his San Diego home when he can, using the same helicopter and pilot as Kobe Bryant had for the commute. He said hasn't been able to think about whether Bryant's crash had now given him pause.
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"We're not going to be able to joke at his Hall-of-Fame ceremony," O'Neal said to start the program. "We're not going to be able to say, 'I got five [championships], you got four.' ...We're not going to be able to stay 'if we had stayed together we would have gotten 10 [championships]. Those are the things you can't get back"
Wade discussed his drive to match Bryant on the floor. The three-time champion said he wanted Bryant to "look at me as an equal."
"There was one person I wanted that respect from," Wade said on TNT. "One person I wanted to look at me as an equal. And look at me eye to eye. And that was Kobe Bryant."
Tuesday marks the third day of games since Bryant's tragic death on Sunday morning. The 76ers hosted the Warriors in the first game of the night, honoring Bryant with 33 seconds of silence. Bryant wore No. 33 at Lower Merion high school in Philadelphia.
Bryant and O'Neal won three championships in a row together in Los Angeles from 2000-02. Wade went 11–9 against Bryant in his career, and the duo played together on the 2008 United States Olympic Team.
The Reds expect Eugenio Suarez to be ready to play "near the beginning of the regular season" but say he will be limited at the beginning of spring training.
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Mourning the loss of friend and former opponent Kobe Bryant, Oklahoma City guard Chris Paul will sit out on Monday, when the Thunder meet the Dallas Mavericks.
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The jerseys were the first of Monday's on-court tributes to Kobe Bryant, who died Sunday at age 41 in a helicopter crash. Bryant's 13-year-old daughter Gianna was also among the nine victims who were killed.
According to Litman, Stewart quickly received countless texts from family and friends: “Did you see what happened with Kobe?"
Orange Coast College baseball coach John Altobelli and his daughter, Alyssa, and wife, Keri, were also aboard the helicopter that crashed and killed nine people
The helicopter went down in the hills of Calabasas and a fire broke out. The crash occurred around 10 a.m. local time and the fire made it difficult for firefighters and emergency personnel to get to the aircraft, according to the city of Calabasas. Nobody on the ground was hurt.
The Lakers have not played since Bryant's death. The NBA announced Monday evening that Tuesday night's game against the Clippers would be postponed and rescheduled for a later date.
Stewart, the 2018 WNBA MVP, missed all of the 2019 season after rupturing her right Achilles tendon last April during the EuroLeague championship game. She is making her first appearance in game action on Monday.
"I'm devastated, just like everybody else," McGrady said.
The seven-time All-Star went on to relay a haunting story about Bryant.
“This sounds crazy, but Kobe spoke this, he spoke this,” the 40-year-old retiree told ESPN's Rachel Nichols.
“He used to say all the time, ‘I want to die young,’” he added.
Bryant, according to McGrady, would also say, ”‘I want to be immortalized and, you know, have my career be better than Michael Jordan and I want to die young.’”
Bryant's 13-year-old daughter Gianna was also with him when the helicopter crashed, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. LA County Sheriff Alex Villanueva told reporters that nine people were aboard the aircraft—the pilot plus eight others.
The helicopter went down in the hills of Calabasas and a fire broke out. The crash occurred around 10 a.m. local time and the fire made it difficult for firefighters and emergency personnel to get to the aircraft, according to the city of Calabasas. Nobody on the ground was hurt.
The Lakers have not played since Bryant's death. The NBA announced Monday evening that Tuesday night's game against the Clippers would be postponed and rescheduled for a later date.
"It's one of the most shocking, tragic days that I've ever been a part of in a very quick span here,'' Tiger Woods said on Sunday, reacting to the news about Kobe Bryant's death.
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“He taught me so many things in life that were necessary on and off the court. On the court, he taught me how to carve out defenses and how to take my time. How to make winning my ultimate goal," Odom wrote. "Off the court, he taught me to sign my own checks lol. Of course anyone who knows my story knows I’ve suffered a lot of loss but the only loss I can compare this to is when I lost my son. Even though our relationship wasn’t father/son, it was more like him being a teacher and me being his brother.”
Odom continued:
“I’m glad I got to be the ying (sic) to your yang as far as the locker room was concerned. It was my pleasure. I couldn’t even catch my breath today when I heard this news. I just knew if he was in a helicopter crash, he would have been the one to survive. Somehow he would have jumped out and landed on his feet. I’m sitting here thinking about when we would be in practice scrimmaging and you would start the jump ball off with elbowing Sasha in the chest. Like dude, it’s 10:30 in the morning lol.”
The two were teammates between 2004-2011, and Odom was part of the Lakers' NBA championships in 2009 and 2010.
“No way God took my brother this early,” the 2011 Sixth Man of the Year wrote. “I know I been through my own stuff in life with using drugs and not being good to myself. When I went through that Coma situation if God would have came to me and said we would take me and spare Kobe I would have rather that happened. In honor of my brother I’m up at 4am tomorrow to get to the gym!
“Gigi gone give you buckets!!!! I love you brother @kobebryant.”
Bryant's 13-year-old daughter Gianna was also with him when the helicopter crashed, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. LA County Sheriff Alex Villanueva told reporters that nine people were on board the aircraft—the pilot plus eight people.
The helicopter went down in the hills of Calabasas and a fire broke out. The crash occurred around 10 a.m. local time and the fire made it difficult for firefighters and emergency personnel to get to the aircraft, according to the city of Calabasas.Nobody on the ground was hurt.
Fighting back tears, Oregon's Sabrina Ionescu told ESPN that she is dedicating her senior season to close friend Kobe Bryant. "Everything I do, I do it for him," she said.
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"All of us know what a great player he was, but he went beyond great playing," Popovich said. "He was a competitor that goes unmatched, and that's what made him as a player so attractive to everybody; that focus, that competitiveness, that will to win."
Popovich added that the team is "pretty emotional" about the tragedy, and that he appreciated the media "letting the locker room be."
"Good game, tough loss, who cares?," Popovich said.
Prior to Sunday's game, both the Spurs and Raptors took 24-second shot clock violations to honor Bryant. Other teams also followed suit in Sunday's remaining games.
"We all feel a deep sense of loss for what he meant to all of us in so many ways, and so many millions of people loved him for so many different reasons," Popovich said. "It's just a tragic thing. There are no words that can describe how everybody feels."
Popovich added that he is thinking about Bryant's family, who is also mourning the loss of Kobe's 13-year-old daughter, Gianna. The two were part of a group of nine aboard a helicopter that crashed in California. Bryant was 41 years old.
Altobelli's daughter Alyssa and wife Keri were also aboard the helicopter.
LA County Sheriff Alex Villanueva told reporters that nine people were on board the aircraft—the pilot plus eight people. All nine have died.
The helicopter went down in the hills of Calabasas and a fire broke out. The crash occurred before 10 a.m. local time, and the fire made it difficult for firefighters and emergency personnel to get to the aircraft, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Gianna and Alyssa were teammates at the Mamba Academy and were flying from Orange County to Thousand Oaks to attend a game, OCC assistant coach Ron La Ruffa told CNN.
“It was something John routinely did, flying up with Kobe to attend games with his daughter,” La Ruffa told CNN.
Orange Coast College officials and supporters gathered at the school as news of Altobelli's death surfaced.
The 56-year-old Altobelli was entering his 24th season as the school's coach.
He had won more than 700 career games and most recently helped guide the Pirates to a 39-9-1 record and a third consecutive Orange Empire Conference title.
Mets all-star Jeff McNeil, who played for Altobelli in the Cape Cod League in 2012, told ESPN that his former coach is "one of the main reasons I’m still playing professional baseball.
"He took a chance on me, kept me the whole summer," McNeil said. "Him taking that chance on me, having me on his team, got me drafted."
Orange Coast College was set to open its 2020 season Tuesday against Southwestern. According to the Orange County Register's Steve Fryer, players are deciding if they will in fact play that game or reschedule it.
died in a helicopter crash on Sunday as the golfer walked off the 18th green and was informed by his caddie Joe LaCava.
TMZ was the first to report that Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, were among nine people on the helicopter when it went down in the hills of Calabasas and a fire broke out. The crash occurred before 10 a.m. local time, and the fire made it difficult for firefighters and emergency personnel to get to the aircraft. All the passengers died.
Bryant and his daughter were reportedly on their way to a travel basketball game with another player and parent.
"I didn't really understand why the people in the gallery were saying, 'Do it for Mamba' but now I understand," Woods said on CBS. "It's a shocker to everyone. Unbelievably sad and one of the more tragic days. For me, reality is just sinking in because I was told about five minutes ago."
Woods, a longtime Lakers fan, was asked what he admired most about Bryant.
"The fire," Woods said. "He burned so competitively hot. And the desire to win. He brought it each and every night on both ends of the floor. Not too many guys can say that throughout NBA history that he'd lock up on D and he was obviously dominant on the offensive side."
In 2016, Woods was playing golf with former New York Yankees star Derek Jeter when he referenced an "end of era thing" with Jeter and Bryant as the MLB and NBA star were retired.
“We all came in together," Woods said, according to the Associated Press. 'We all followed each other, watched each other. We all were in the prime of our career, doing stuff, winning championships, winning majors."
Bryant was an 18-time All-Star and 11-time All-NBA first-teamer, who led the Lakers to five NBA championships and scored 33,643 points in his 20-year NBA career. He retired after the 2015-16 season, having spent his entire career with the Lakers. The franchise retired his No. 8 and No. 24 jersey numbers in Dec. 2017. Woods tweeted a tribute thanking Bryant for the memories and championships when the Lakers star retired in 2016.
Bryant was among the athletes and celebrities to congratulate Woods on social media when he won his fifth Masters in 2019.
Woods finished six shots back of winner Marc Leishman at the Farmers Insurance Open. He will compete at the Genesis Invitational near Los Angeles next.
Gianna Bryant and her father are gone, and that is not quite how Bryants' story will be told, but it’s how we should think about it first. We all get one life, none more important than any other. Gianna did not have the chance to live hers, and the sadness is unbearable. For her mom, Vanessa, and for her sisters Natalia, Bianca and Capri, there will be a million tributes, and all will be insufficient. What do you say? What does it matter?
Their thoughts are theirs, to form over time, and to share only if they ever feel the desire. Our thoughts about the Bryant family should start with Gianna, and nobody understood that better than Kobe Bryant.
From a distance, especially he was young, Kobe was easy to caricature as the kind of man who would only be happy raising a boy, and then, only a boy like him. He was legendarily competitive, the most committed athlete in his sport, a proud and self-described “alpha male” who had an uneven relationship with his own father. But one reason Kobe Bryant was so alluring was that he didn’t just do what society expected him to do. He coached girls’ basketball and became perhaps the sport’s most prominent fan. He told Jimmy Kimmel that when strangers said he needed a son to carry his legacy, he had a quick answer: Gianna could handle it herself.
Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports
One of the hardest tasks for any of us is figuring out who we are. Kobe went beyond that: He always seemed to know who he would become. He knew it when he turned pro out of Lower Merion High School, back when nobody did that; the best basketball prospect in the world at that time, Tim Duncan, decided to return to Wake Forest for his senior season. A SportsCenter anchor quoted an anonymous scout saying the kid had made a mistake. Well.
You could say there were better players, but that was missing the point. Kobe was not about efficiency or advanced metrics or even those best-ever debates. His career was about bending the game to his will. He won three titles with Shaq and two more without. In the middle, of course, he was accused of sexually assaulting a woman in Colorado; charges were dropped and he settled a civil suit. That is part of Bryant’s story, but analyzing the particulars of it today feels both reductive and insensitive to everybody.
He thought he was the best player on the Lakers before he joined the starting lineup. He knew he wanted to marry a teenager named Vanessa Laine when so many said it was a mistake. He set his goal to be the best player ever before he was close to being the best player in the NBA. He saw the Lakers as his team even when teammate Shaquille O’Neal was the most dominant player of his era. He envisioned a happy, creative, post-playing life before he stopped playing.
The basketball court is where he found solace and developed an unwavering belief in himself. The easy comparison, stylistically, was always Michael Jordan; Bryant copied MJ without apology and with stunning success. But the best comparisons were mental, and they transcended sports: Jordan, Tiger Woods, those athletes who expected success, no matter what was happening, because expecting to succeed was their core belief.
The NBA’s Banana Boat generation that came after him—LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul Carmelo Anthony—is a brotherhood, and that is admirable. But damn, there was nothing quite like the feeling in an arena when Kobe Bryant had the ball in his hands with the clock winding down. They have a word in L.A. for the other nine guys on the court at that moment. Extras.
What a life, but more, what a way to live life. This is what we’ll miss, and this, at its core, is why the grief over Bryant’s death is so profound. This guy had it figured out. He knew how you were supposed to feel when you woke up in the morning. He understood the value of a day. He could make anybody in his orbit understand, too.
Imagine having that man as your dad.
Heartbreaking is the word we use most often when describing the death of a child, and it never feels close to adequate. We will never know the woman that Gianna Bryant would have become. We know her father would have urged her to become whatever she wanted, to dream as big as she could, and then dream bigger than that.
Krzyzewski coached Bryant during his two Olympic gold medal victories with the U.S. national basketball team in 2008 and 2012.
"We have tragically lost one of the greatest sports figures of our time with the passing of Kobe Bryant," Krzyzewski said. "He was an incredibly gifted person who was universally respected."
Krzyzewski added that Bryant "cherished representing his country in a first-class manner playing the game he so loved."
Bryant was a member of the national team from 2008-12, a memorable run that included his participation in the "Redeem Team," which won the the gold medal in 2008 after falling short in 2004.
"The game of basketball is better today because of Kobe, and he deserves eternal appreciation for that," Krzyzewski said.
"He was in constant pursuit of doing something special and there will never be a greater warrior in our sport."
Krzyzewski added his remorse for the death of Bryant's daughter, Gianna, and all others on board the helicopter that crashed in California on Sunday. A total of nine people did not survive the crash, according to LA County Sheriff Alex Villanueva.
