RIP Kobe Bryant: Sports, Music and Hollywood Stars Mourn NBA Legend

Lakers superstar was killed in a helicopter crash earlier today

kobe bryant
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The death of NBA legend Kobe Bryant is hitting Hollywood and his fellow athletes hard.

Bryant, a five-time NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers, was reported dead on Sunday morning along with four others in a helicopter crash in Southern California just hours before several NBA games were set to tip off. During the early minutes of a game between the Houston Rockets and Denver Nuggets, Rockets center Tyson Chandler was shown sitting on his team’s bench in tears.

In Texas, during a game between the Toronto Raptors and San Antonio Spurs, both teams agreed to allow the 24 second shot clock to expire to begin the game in honor of Bryant, who wore the number 24. Lakers legend Jerry West also spoke to the Los Angeles Times about his memories of the basketball star.

“To have been such, particularly when he was young, to be a part of his life and to watch his career grow, watch him grow, this is one of the most tragic days of my life,” West said. “I know somewhere along the way I guess I’ll come to grips with it. But now I have all these different emotions regarding him. The things I watched him do on the basketball court, but more importantly he was going to make a difference off the court, and he was making a difference off the court. It’s so unexplainable. This is going to take a long time for me.”

The feelings of shock and sadness poured out beyond the sports world, as Hollywood celebrities and other well-known figures expressed their condolences. Here are some of the reactions:

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