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Kyrie Irving #11 of the Brooklyn Nets looks on during the NBA game against the Detroit Pistons at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, January 29, 2020.
It's only been a few days, not nearly enough for the players who were close with Kobe Bryant to get over his death.
Unlike Sunday, Kyrie Irving was at least able to take his grief onto the basketball court.
"I couldn't even come up with wanting to play that game," Irving said. "It was so heartbreaking, and it still is. I'm doing my best."
He scored 20 points in his return to the lineup Wednesday night, Spencer Dinwiddie scored 28 points in his first game with his new jersey number, and the Brooklyn Nets beat the Detroit Pistons 125-115.
Irving didn't play Sunday at New York after learning of Bryant's death, and Dinwiddie, a Los Angeles native, was in tears after that game talking about what the Lakers star meant to him.
"I think I still had the emotion but I'm not going to put all that on this situation," Dinwiddie said. "Our goal of our team is just to come together and try to progress throughout the season."
Dinwiddie changed his number from No. 8, one of the numbers Bryant wore, to No. 26 on Tuesday. He said he picked the number by adding his birthday, April 6, with his son Elijah's April 20.
Irving was friends with Bryant and appeared to be in tears during a pregame tribute to the superstar, when Bryant's numbers 8 and 24 were lit up on the court and on the overhead video screen that showed the longtime Lakers star's highlights.
Kyrie Irving #11 of the Brooklyn Nets drives to the basket against the Detroit Pistons at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, January 29, 2020.
The Nets left two seats open with flowers on them at Barclays Center in honor of Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna, who were among the nine people killed in a helicopter crash Sunday. The pair sat in those seats near Brooklyn's bench for a Dec. 21 game against Atlanta. Gianna was a fan of the Hawks' Trae Young.
Lakers return to practice amid grief over Bryant's death
The Los Angeles Lakers ended practice with a few somber, almost plaintive laughs. As they left the court, they all passed under the oversized 8 and 24 outlined in white on the black wall above the door to their locker room.
Anthony Davis and several other Lakers paused and looked up at Kobe Bryant's two retired numbers for a moment before they moved forward.
The Lakers are still grieving and mourning Bryant's death Sunday in a helicopter crash along with his daughter, Gianna, and seven others. Los Angeles' players and coaches returned to work Wednesday at their training complex with a determination to keep Bryant and the victims in their thoughts while getting on with the business of basketball and life.
"We want to represent what Kobe was about, more than anything," Lakers coach Frank Vogel said. "We've always wanted to make him proud, and that's not going to be any different now."
Vogel, who joined the Lakers eight months ago, was the only person to speak to the media after the workout. The loss apparently was still too raw for the players, including superstars LeBron James and Davis, who played in the Olympics with Bryant.
Although Bryant retired in 2016, he is still enormously important to his franchise and his sport. Ever since the Lakers drafted the 17-year-old guard from suburban Philadelphia in 1996, Bryant had been a face of this franchise and a basketball-mad city while he became a five-time NBA champion and his team's career leader in points and games played.
Fans of NBA basketball star Kobe Bryant pay their respects at a memorial outside the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, January 27, 2020.
The current Lakers are still grappling with the loss while they prepare for their next game Friday night at Staples Center against Portland.
Bryant's death has temporarily overwhelmed an exciting season of rebirth for the Lakers, who have missed the playoffs for a franchise-record six straight years. The current Lakers are poised for a serious run at the franchise's 17th championship, with James and Davis leading a burgeoning powerhouse to the Western Conference's best record at 36-10.
But life and basketball have been put in a new perspective for everyone around the Lakers.
After their game against the Clippers on Tuesday night was postponed, the players and coaches gathered that afternoon to share stories and remembrances because it felt "therapeutic and beneficial," Vogel said.
"It's been something that has touched my family, being the father of daughters, and it's been very emotional," Vogel said. "It's something that brings us together. I'm around the people who were closest to Kobe throughout his time here, and it's been just a deeply saddening time for all of us."
Indeed, Bryant still had close ties to dozens of employees of the organization for which he played his entire 20-year career. Lakers owner Jeanie Buss was quite close to his family, and general manager Rob Pelinka was Bryant's longtime agent.
"He was the most feared man in the league for an entire generation," Vogel said. "His influence is found league-wide, in basketball league-wide, and the Lakers family worldwide."
Source(s): AP
