BIANCHI: Bryant’s death casts pall over Orlando Pro Bowl.
This was supposed to be a column about a festive day of football in Orlando.
It was going to be a column about how, after three years of miserable Orlando weather, the sun finally came out and the City Beautiful threw a Pro Bowl party to end all Pro Bowl parties.
It should have been a column about how 54,024 fans showed up at Camping World Stadium to watch the NFL’s biggest stars put on a show that included a 61-yard interception return/lateral for a touchdown, an 82-yard fumble return for another touchdown and a 38-33 AFC victory over the NFC.
But all of that sadly and surreally changed before the game even started.
Just before kickoff, a sunny honey of a Sunday afternoon in Central Florida suddenly turned dark and dreary and depressing.
Kobe Bryant, 41, and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna were dead, among nine people killed in a helicopter crash in Southern California.
“Damn not Kobe,” tweeted New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas from the tunnel just before he ran onto the field at Camping World Stadium.
“Nobody wanted to believe it,” said former UCF star Shaquill Griffin, a cornerback for the Seattle Seahawks. “I didn’t want to believe it. I was hoping it was just some fake news that somebody was putting out there. “
At the two-minute warning of the first half, everybody knew the news was real. That’s when Kobe’s photograph flashed onto the stadium Jumbotron with a somber, simple message: “Kobe Bryant: 1978-2020.”
Jaguars defensive tackle Calais Campbell, the defensive MVP of the game, was among those Pro Bowlers who took off his helmet and took a knee at midfield. Another player feigned a Kobe basketball move. Fans chanted Kobe’s name.
After catching a 13-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter, Green Bay Packers wide receiver Davante Adams paid homage by touching his heart, looking skyward and doing a 360-degree slam dunk over the goalposts.
Right after NFC linebacker Za’Darius Smith of the Green Bay Packers sacked AFC quarterback Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens, Smith and defensive
teammates Shaq Barrett of the Tampa Bay Bucs and Darius Slay of the Detroit Lions celebrated by facing each other and all doing their rendition of Kobe’s famous fall-away jumper.
Slay grew up idolizing Bryant so much that he still warms up before big games while wearing his customized Kobe Lakers hoodie.
“If I’m going up against a guy who is a top, top, top receiver, I put on my ‘Black Mamba’ hoodie because I know I need to go out there and lock up, get right and become a deadly snake out on the field,” Slay said with tears in his eyes. “Kobe was about competing, preparing and going out every game with the intent of destroying his opponent. And now he’s gone. This is devastating and heartbreaking.”
Bryant, partly because he spent his entire career playing for the glitzy, glamorous Los Angeles Lakers, wasn’t just a basketball superstar; he was an international celebrity who transcended sports. His passing was met with disbelief throughout the sports, entertainment and political world.
On Instagram, Shaquille O’Neal, who won three NBA titles with Kobe in L.A., wrote: “I’m sick right now … There’s no words to express the pain I’m going through with this tragic and sad moment of losing my friend, my brother, my partner in winning championships, my dude and my homie. I love you brother and you will be missed.”
Tweeted former Miami Heat superstar Dwyane Wade: “Nooooooooooo God please No!”
Wrote super model Chrissy Teigen: “I cannot believe this is real. My god. Oh my god.”
Television host Ellen DeGeneres tweeted, “Like everyone, I’m stunned and saddened by the
news about Kobe Bryant. My heart is broken for his wife and family.”
From Orange County, California, to Orange County, Florida, Kobe’s death evoked not only an intense sadness, but immense memories. In Orlando, we saw Kobe’s greatness firsthand during the 2009 NBA Finals. It was Kobe’s first trip to the Finals without Shaq and he led the Lakers to a 4-1 victory over the Magic by averaging 32.4 points, 7.4 assists and 5.6 rebounds. He set the tone for the series in Game 1 when he scored 40 points and led the Lakers to a 100-75 blowout.
In a text message, former Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said, “My main memory is how many times in the 2009 Finals, I turned to my assistants after a Kobe Bryant basket and said, ‘Damn, that was good defense.’”
The thing is Kobe’s cut-throat competitiveness wasn’t just admired by those in the NBA, he was revered by those athletes in the toughest sport of them all — the NFL.
Said the Bucs’ Barrett: “It doesn’t matter if you play football or basketball or whatever sport; Kobe’s ‘Mamba Mentality’ meant so much to so many athletes.”
Sadly, for many NFL All-Stars, Sunday will not be remembered for the day they played in the Pro Bowl; it will be remembered for where they were and what they were doing on the day Kobe died.
A sunny day that was supposed to be celebration of the NFL’s biggest stars turned into a somber tribute to one of the sporting world’s most famous icons.
“Kobe,” an emotional Shaquill Griffin said, shaking his head in disbelief, “is an angel to all of us now.”