Friday's game against the Trail Blazers was the first time the Lakers played since that tragic accident. And it felt like a state funeral, dwarfing in emotional importance the game itself.
Others wore their Lakers jerseys, wrote messages on poster boards and observed piles of memorabilia and gifts on the ground outside, including shoes, photos, candles, flowers and basketballs.
“He was a cocky young man, but he always backed it up,” said Jason Nguyen, who brought a floral arrangement in purple and gold and stood it up next to the growing pile of gifts on the ground outside the arena. “We’ve just seen him grow and grow and grow. And you’d see progress and maturity. He just exploded. He just took over and brought us championships.”
“I wish I could just hand this to Vanessa,” said Lisa Jackson, an artist who held a plaque made of clay depicting Bryant and his daughter. Jackson said she started making the piece when she found out about Bryant’s death Sunday.
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