If the death of Kobe Bryant on January 26 struck the entire NBA sphere, the news struck even harder among the Lakers, HQ Black Mamba for 20 seasons. Anthony Davis recently described the difficult context in which the players learned of the tragedy, in mid-flight to return to Los Angeles.
When the news of the death of Kobe Bryant fell on Sunday January 26, the Lakers were on a flight from Philadelphia to Los Angeles after a 10-day road trip and 5 games on the East Coast.
In the firing line, a well-deserved rest of three days before a shock at the Staples Center against the Clippers scheduled for February 28. But this flight will mark them forever, since most players will leave the plane with tears in their eyes, dejected by what they had just learned a few moments earlier.
For ESPN, Anthony Davis returned to the background surrounding the announcement of Kobe’s death to the Lakers team. The interior was watching the film Avengers: Endgame when Dwight Howard signaled him to remove his headphones.
“I took my headphones off and looked at it. Dwight said to me, “Kobe is dead.” And I, convinced that Kobe was invincible, I replied: “Kobe? Kobe who? “. Because I figured it wasn’t him, it wasn’t Kobe Bryant.
He said to me “Kobe! “. So I ask him to confirm, because I’m not sure who he is talking about. “Kobe Bryant! “. At that time, LeBron was still asleep. So I ask him for details, and he tells me it’s a helicopter accident.
Then I started shaking Bron ‘Wake up! Wake up! I remember the first thing Bron said to me was, “Man, stop, stop paying me my head.”
And at that point, Dwight started crying, because it was true. “
Concerning Dwight Howard, Davis will also confide that a few moments later, they found him curled up on himself in the toilet, in tears.
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Very quickly, the whole plane was awakened. Players are flocking to phones and turning on wifi to access the internet and try to figure out what’s going on. And when they realize the sad truth, tears start to fall. AD continues:
“Everyone was crying.
It was something we did not expect, it was shocking for everyone. Because Kobe inspired and touched many players and staff members of this team. “
Frank Vogel’s side, no time to lose. Quickly informed by Jeanie Buss that the rumor was true and that Kobe was indeed gone, he decides to speak on the plane to formally inform his group:
“When I knew it was 100% true, then I told myself that the players also saw all the information. I’m their coach, so I felt instinctively that I had to say it, that they should hear it directly from me. “
As an exceptional leader, LeBron James immediately gathered his teammates, and he said a few prayer-like words. An initiative necessary at the time according to him:
“I think it was necessary for us at this time to thank the one above (God, note). Although sometimes you question him and you question some of the things he does, you have to keep in mind that he never makes a mistake.
We just have to hope that he protects Vanessa and the children and that he continues to watch over us. “
The rest of the journey continued between tears and freezing silence. This Jan. 26 flight from Philadelphia will forever be the longest in the lives of all members of the Lakers organization.
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