The shocking news of the death of Kobe Bryant was devastating to Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James, who was clearly distraught about the horrific tragedy after exiting the team’s plane.
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James made no effort to hide the agony of losing someone he had known for the past two decades, with their careers intersecting in the NBA for 13 seasons from 2003 to 2016.
The news came less than 24 hours after James had passed Bryant on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, with Bryant offering a congratulatory tweet in the immediate aftermath of the accomplishment. That social media message turned out to be Bryant’s final tweet.
After the game, James had spoken of his reverence for Bryant and how it was especially notable that James passed him in Bryant’s hometown of Philadelphia. Their connection dated back to even before James entered the NBA, with both players having moved directly from high school to the NBA.
James has yet to offer any thoughts on social media, but it’s certain that he’ll make an effort to pay tribute to Bryant, whose 13-year-old daughter Gianna was also one of the victims of the tragedy.
