MADRID, Jan. 27 (SportsFinding) –
Dallas Mavericks has announced that he will retire number 24 as a tribute to former basketball player Kobe Bryant, who died Sunday in a helicopter accident with eight other people in the Californian town of Calabasas.
“We will miss you very much, legend. No one in the Mavericks will use the 24 again,” said the Texas franchise on their social networks next to a photo of the player with the phrase 'Legends never die. Rest in peace, Kobe and Gianna Bryant '.
Bryant, 41, has never played in the Mavericks and has developed his entire career at the Los Angeles Lakers, so the act of retiring his dorsal in Dallas shows his magnitude as a player in the best basketball league in the world.
Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban also showed his desolation over what happened. “We are shocked and saddened by the devastating news of the death of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna. Kobe was an ambassador of our sport, a legend and a global icon. Above all, he was a loving and dedicated father,” he explained.
“Kobe's legacy transcends basketball, and our organization has decided that number 24 will never be used by a Dallas Mavericks player. Our hearts are with all lives lost and families affected by this terrible tragedy. We send our thoughts and Prayers to Vanessa and the family, to the Lakers and to the followers of Kobe Bryant everywhere, “he concluded.