This is usually the NBA Hangover, when we jot down thoughts about the league from the previous night. But right now, it is extremely tough to talk about basketball after this tragic event.
Again, it still doesn’t feel real.
(PHOTO CREDIT: Michael Owen Baker/AP.)
I sit here and wonder how the hell anyone can play a sport at the highest level knowing that someone they have idolized, someone they have respected, someone they have befriended, and someone that left fingerprints all over the game that they have played and loved nearly their entire lives had perished in an inconceivable manner. I’ve been here trying to collect my thoughts. I’m numb. I’m confused. I feel lost. I have a sense of loss. I feel incredibly… mortal.
The NBA didn’t cancel games on Sunday and Monday, which I get because that is a logistical nightmare. But the league has cancelled the upcoming (as fate would have it) Clippers/Lakers game. Southern California is really feeling the pain right now of not just the passing of Kobe Bryant and his precious daughter, Gianna, but seven other individuals that were also in that horrific tragedy. We’re all still trying to reconcile on what happened and it’s still going to take a long time for a lot of us to get through this.
I know players like James Harden, Chris Paul, and Kyrie Irving have taken the days off because this horrific event is just too much to bear. Kobe was someone they spent time with. Someone they bonded with. He’s a friend of theirs. It’s very understandable to get away because it’s tough to do anything when someone that they knew personally dies.
For some, the basketball court is their sanctuary. And I believe that Kobe would tell people to go on with the show. And, yes, their own work can be an escape from the harsh reality. Different people cope in different ways. Eric Gordon scored 50 points. Buddy Hield scored 42. DeMar DeRozan scored 36.
But in the end, even if they’re getting paid millions to play basketball, it’s still a game. The ones that play the game are still human beings. Someone lost a friend. Someone lost a mother. Someone lost a father. Someone lost a daughter. Someone lost a son. Someone lost a sister. Someone lost a brother. Someone lost a cousin. Someone lost an aunt. Someone lost an uncle. We all lost those nine individuals. Basketball is great and it has taken me and a lot of us through life. But this is bigger than basketball.
We’re still trying to navigate through all of this. We saw Kobe Bryant as an overwhelming force on the court and he defeated teams time and time again. Sometimes, he’d defeat them within a moment. Unfortunately, even the ones we thought invincible can also fall in a moment and that’s the sobering reality out of all of this.
Cherish every moment you have with your loved ones.
Here is your customary scoreboard and play if you need a distraction.
The Scoreboard
CLE 115 (13-34) @ DET 100 (17-31)
ORL 92 (21-27) @ MIA 113 (32-14)
SA 109 (20-26) @ CHI 110 (19-30)
SAC 133 (17-29) @ MIN 129 (15-32)
DAL 107 (29-17) @ OKC 97 (28-20)
HOU 126 (29-17) @ UTA 117 (32-14)
Watch This Play
Here’s Chandler Hutchison with the throwdown in front of Chimezie Metu.
Chandler Hutchison throws it down with the left in Chicago. The Bulls lead the Spurs 50-48 at halftime. pic.twitter.com/cfvgcgK66T
— NBA (@NBA) January 28, 2020
Here is a tribute to Gianna Bryant.
UConn honors Gianna Bryant by saving her a jersey and a seat on the bench. Gianna wanted to play for UConn.
(PHOTO CREDIT: Pamela Costello/Getty Images.)
GG.
Rey-Rey is on Twitter at @TheNoLookPass.
TNLP on FaceBook.
For the rest of the season, I will sign off with GG, which usually means “Good Game.” But we also know “Gigi” is Gianna Bryant’s nickname. This will be my tribute to her.