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Athletes, entertainers and politicians took to social media to pay tribute to former Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant, who died along with his 13-year-old daughter and seven others in a helicopte crash near Los Angeles. Here are their posts.
“Jeannine & I are absolutely shocked to hear of the loss of one of my favorite people & one of the best basketball minds in the history of the game! Our hearts & prayers to Vanessa & his girls. @kobebryant you were my biggest fan, but I was yours”
– Bill Russell, five-time NBA Most Valuable Player, 11-time NBA champion with the Boston Celtics
“Kobe was a legend on the court and just getting started in what would have been just as meaningful a second act. To lose Gianna is even more heartbreaking to us as parents. Michelle and I send love and prayers to Vanessa and the entire Bryant family on an unthinkable day.”
– Barack Obama, former US president
“Most people will remember Kobe as the magnificent athlete who inspired a whole generation of basketball players. But I will always remember him as a man who was much more than an athlete.”
– Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, six-time NBA champion and league’s all-time scoring leader