For LeBron James, the tragic passing of Kobe Bryant last Sunday in a helicopter crash provided a powerful reminder of life’s priorities, Ben Golliver of the Washington Post writes.
The crash also took the lives of eight others, including Bryant’s 13-year-old daughter Gianna. James has three children of his own (Bronny, Bryce and Zhuri, all between the ages of five and 15), and the three-time NBA champion was impacted harder than most by the devastating news.
“Seeing Kobe playing the game of basketball for 20 years,” James said, “you know what’s crazy? Out of all the success he had — five rings, MVPs, first-team everything, all-life, all-world, all-basketball — I felt like the last three years were the happiest I’ve ever seen him. Being able to be with his daughters and his family.”
James gave an inspiring speech prior to the Lakers‘ game against Portland on Friday night, speaking from his heart and remembering the lives of each victim. The game also included various performances, decorations and memorabilia to honor the Bryant family.
“What he said was just beautiful. It was strong,” Lakers coach Frank Vogel said of James’ speech. “It represented who he is and who we are as a team. [That was] definitely the heaviest game I’ve been a part of.”
For the Lakers, it’ll unquestionably be difficult to progress forward this season. However, in James’ mind, basketball remains second on his list of priorities.
“When you punch your clocks and we punch our clocks, when we’re done for the day, make sure you hug the s— out of your family,” James told the media. “If you have kids, tell them you love them. Try to make it to as much as you can, and don’t feel bad if you happen to go to one of your loved one’s events and [that means you] sacrifice your job.”
There’s more out of the Pacific Division tonight:
- Kawhi Leonard‘s impressive scoring surge has lifted the Clippers in recent games, Mirjam Swanson of the Orange County Register writes. Leonard has scored 30+ points in his last nine outings, averaging 34.6 points per contest over that span. “Just midseason,” Leonard said. “My teammates are being aggressive. I’m able to get open shots off of their attacks and drives. I’m just able to make shots right now.”
- Anthony Slater of The Athletic previews the trade deadline for the Warriors, including their current mindset, which players could be available via trade, and more. The NBA’s annual deadline falls on Thursday, February 6 this season.
- Gina Mizell of The Athletic examines which players are most likely to be dealt for the Suns, examining the contracts of Aron Baynes, Tyler Johnson and others. Phoenix has had a tumultuous season to date, accruing a 20-29 record through 49 games.
Kawhi could of been a top 10 all time great if not top 5 or 3 player all time with his talent.
He still has plenty of time to get there, he’s only 28 and already has an impressive list of accolades.
Aaron Baynes for Jerome Robinson and a second round pick
Clippers could do with a experienced centre with good size, good defence and some three point shooting ability.
The clippers will have to come up against team with 2 real bigs like AD and Howard on the Lakers and Horford and Embid on the 6ers. Harrell and Zubac are their only real bigs and Harrell is small and Zubac is only good for 20 mins
I honestly feel like the clippers probably don’t even need to add the pick
LeBron’s speech was good except for the part where he pretended he had a different speech written on the paper and “they” asked him to stay on course and not speak from the heart. Aside from that, very good!
Even Trumplike!
“Impacted more than most” is a helluva sentence to write. But sure. Whatever is needed for the narrative.
Is celebrity rapist week almost over? WTF.
Enough already. Talented player. He raped one of our daughters. Great job.
Imagine thinking she was a victim of anything but being a gold digger. How convenient she lied to police and turned to a civil case once the criminal charges were dropped.
How would you classify the Suns’ season as tumultuous?