Magic Johnson, Jennifer Hudson and Chance the Rapper all used a microphone to pay tribute to Kobe Bryant throughout All-Star Sunday.
The actual All-Stars?
They had their skills, their pride, their showmanship and their intensity to give.
As he walked through the United Center hallway, his child in his arms and his Kobe Bryant All-Star MVP Award nearby, Kawhi Leonard smiled when he thought about how Bryant would’ve reacted to Sunday’s show.
“He would’ve loved this,” Leonard said. “We were out there competing. We had the 10 best players in the world on the floor at one time, going out there to compete, there’s nothing like that.”
Leonard scored a game-high 30 points while hitting a very fitting eight three-point shots in Team LeBron’s 157-155 dramatic win over Team Giannis.
With the first team to 157 winning, the two teams battled through a rugged untimed fourth quarter. Toronto’s Kyle Lowry drew multiple charges, LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo took turns stopping one another and multiple players were sent to the court while teams scrambled for loose balls.
The stakes were high — $300,000 for charity — with the possible recipients sitting underneath the basket energizing the players and the arena. When James’ team needed a missed free throw, he called on the Chicago Scholars kids to make as much noise as possible — cheers that were rewarded with a miss.
