After the NBA canceled and postponed Tuesday's matchup between the Los Angeles Clippers and Lakers at the Staples Center, the building Kobe Bryant built hosted its next basketball game when the Clippers lost against the Sacramento Kings on Thursday.
Despite being Bryant and the Lakers' little brother for most of the future Hall of Fame shooting guard's, who died on Jan. 26 in a tragic helicopter crash alongside 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others, career, the Clippers still honored the lifetime L.A. professional athlete on Friday.
The Clippers' practice facility scoreboard displayed numbers 8 and 24, via ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk.
The scoreboard inside the Clippers practice facility after today’s practice. pic.twitter.com/oFCUL1wKUF
— Ohm Youngmisuk (@NotoriousOHM) January 31, 2020
A crane outside the practice facility was also seen carrying a large Bryant No. 8 jersey, per ClutchPoints' Tomer Azarly.
A crane holding a Kobe Bryant No. 8 Lakers jersey being lifted up across the street from the Clippers practice facility. pic.twitter.com/bJWT1YIwth
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) January 31, 2020
The league has yet to reschedule the Lakers-Clippers bout that was suspended on Tuesday. The next game for the grieving purple and gold franchise is Friday night at home against the Portland Trail Blazers. Ten-time NBA All-Star Carmelo Anthony, a forward on the Blazers now, will miss Friday's game as he continues to mourn the loss of close friend Bryant, with whom he was an Olympic teammate, winning two gold medals alongside years of playing with one another on the Western Conference All-Star team.
The Lakers have had an especially difficult time dealing with the truly sudden loss of their franchise icon for twenty years. While the make-up game for Tuesday's postponed contest is unknown at the moment, the next time the Clippers and Lakers will face off is Sunday, March 8, unless the NBA pushes for the make-up matchup before then.
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