NBA All-Star weekend jerseys have patches honoring Kobe and Gianna Bryant and the seven other Calabasas crash victims as well as a black band for former NBA Commissioner David Stern.
Kobe Bryant will be in the hearts and on the mind of the NBA community gathering in Chicago for All-Star Weekend.
The first All-Star Game since the tragic helicopter crash that claimed the life of the former Los Angeles Lakers star, his daughter Gianna Bryant and seven others in Calabasas will honor them with a path on the jerseys for All-Star weekend.
Fans watching the Rising Stars Challenge and All-Star Saturday night events will have jerseys with Nos. 2 and 24 patches
The nine stars in a black circle represent the nine victims in the Jan. 26 crash.
The NBA previously announced the numbers for the All-Star Game on Sunday will have the numbers 2 and 24 to honor Gianna and Kobe.
Team LeBron will wear No. 2 while Team Giannis will wear No. 24. According to ESPN, the NBA asked LeBron which number he wanted his team to wear and he picked No. 2 because of his daughter Zhuri. A proud Girl dad.
In addition, the NBA tweaked the All-Star Game to honor Kobe by adding 24 points to the winning team after three quarters.
From the NBA’s All-Star Game press release:
Team Giannis and Team LeBron will compete to win each of the first three quarters, all of which will start with the score of 0-0 and will be 12 minutes long. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, the game clock will be turned off and a Final Target Score will be set.
The Final Target Score will be determined by taking the leading team’s total cumulative score through three quarters and adding 24 points – the 24 representing Bryant’s jersey number for the final 10 seasons of his NBA career. The teams will then play an untimed fourth quarter and the first team to reach the Final Target Score will win the NBA All-Star Game.
The black stripe on the left side of the jersey is for former NBA Commissioner David Stern who passed away on Jan. 1 after suffering a brain hemorrhage.
There may be other tributes for Kobe and Stern during the telecasts during All-Star weekend with players speaking and/or video montages of the 18-time All-Star.
The NBA All-Star Celebrity Game airs on Friday on ESPN at 7 p.m.
The NBA Rising Stars Challenge featuring the NBA’s top rookies and sophomores is on Friday at 9 p.m. ET on TNT.
NBA All-Star Saturday Night featuring a skills challenge, 3-point contest and the slam dunk contest airs on TNT at 8 p.m. ET.
The All-Star Game is on TNT on Sunday at 8 p.m. ET from the United Center.