The Lakers along with friends, family & fans are still mourning the death of Lakers’ owner Dr. Jerry Buss. Kobe hasn’t said a word on Twitter since his passing and has finally opened up about it. Check out what he had to say along with what the Lakers are doing to honor the memory of Jerry Buss.
*PHOTOS ABOVE IN GALLERY*
According to Dave McMenamin at ESPN:
Before the Los Angeles Lakers could move on with the second half of the season following the All-Star break, they were left looking back at the life of legendary owner Dr. Jerry Buss on Tuesday.
“To me personally, he obviously believed in me from Day 1, being a 17-year old kid to where I am now,” Kobe Bryant said before practice, reflecting on Buss who died Monday at the age of 80. “His competitive spirit, his vision of what this organization should be and how it should go beyond basketball, the global outreach that he had in his mind, we talked quite a bit about that. We talked about the old times and he’s obviously had a profound impact on my career to say the least.”
“I’m very confident,” Bryant said when asked if he believed Buss’ family could carry on his tradition of excellence. “You’re following the greatest owner in sports. To try to match that or equal that, it’s nearly an impossible task. But, I think in their own way they’ll have success, for sure.”
Bryant said winning another ring for Buss has been on his mind all season long.
“It’s part of the reason why I try to drive so hard,” Bryant said. “When we talked, we talked about getting another championship and trying to put the [Boston] Celtics in the rearview mirror. That’s something that was driving him and that’s something that continues to drive me.”
Before Buss is laid to rest, the Lakers just so happen to play a game against the Celtics on Wednesday — the team that Buss battled with for those 30 years, as his Lakers met them in the Finals five times in that span, winning three times. The Lakers will debut commemorative purple and gold “JB” patches on their uniforms against Boston and wear them for the rest of the season in remembrance of Buss.
“Just stay focused on the moment, have a good practice today and come out [Wednesday] night ready to put on a good show in his honor,” Bryant said, planning an appropriate tribute to the man responsible for “Showtime.”
