The types of memories that players and coaches from the team formerly known as the Mambas relive, as if by playing them in their minds they can somehow preserve those who were lost. These are the types of memories that remain.

We don’t wanna bother you!” Moorhouse told Kobe. Moorhouse didn’t want to impose or act like he was trying to take advantage of Kobe: “No, man, it’s really OK. Matt Moorhouse, Santiago’s head coach, couldn’t believe it when Kobe offered to attend one of the team’s practices. He once spent several hours teaching Santiago High’s boys’ and girls’ basketball coaches the intricacies of the triangle offense, carefully explaining to the staff how it could even be run against a zone.

He was trying to forge strong bonds within the basketball community. Giving back to the game he loved so much gave Kobe joy: traveling to high schools in the Orange County area to sit in on practices, befriending local coaches whom he had no connection to. He recorded a video for a local high school girls’ coach in Orange County who had been diagnosed with cancer. He invited some to work out with WNBA players he knew.

Remember, you have to flash higher if you want to turn, catch, and face more effectively, he’d tell them. I was just thinking about that one move you did the other day. He texted many of them with advice, randomly dropping in little nuggets. He mentored players on rival eighth grade AAU teams and high schools. Tonight is a celebration.Kobe’s love for girls’ basketball extended far beyond his own team. Tonight, we celebrate the kid that came here at 18 years of age, retired at 38 and became probably the best dad we've seen over the past three years, man. The countless hours, the determination to be as great as he could be. This is a celebration of the 20 years of the blood, the sweat, the tears, the broken-down body, the getting up, the sitting down, the everything. 'But I look at this as a celebration tonight.

'Now I know at some point, we will have a memorial for Kobe,' LeBron continued. 'And from Sunday morning all the way to this point - and I've heard about Laker Nation before I got here last year, about how much of a family it is - and that's absolutely what I've seen all week.' But when we're going through things like this, the best thing you can do is lean on the shoulders of your family,' he shared. 'As I look around this arena, we're all grieving. Usher performed 'Amazing Grace,' Boyz II Men sang an emotional rendition of the National Anthem, Cellist Ben Hong performed while two emotional video tributes played to the packed crowd, and Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth performed their heartbreaking record 'See You Again.'įollowing the musical performances, LeBron James addressed the crowd with a speech 'from his heart.' On Friday (January 31), the Lakers paid tribute to Kobe, Gigi, and the seven other passengers on the helicopter, during the team's first game since the fatal helicopter crash.

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