LeBron James has broken his silence following the death of a friend and mentor in Kobe Bryant, taking to Instagram to post an emotional farewell to the basketball icon late Monday night.
Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna perished in a tragic helicopter accident in Calabasas, California on Sunday morning along with seven other people. The father and daughter were on their way to her basketball game when their aircraft ran into difficulty brought on by a thick fog, slamming into a mountain and spiraling towards the ground.
LeBron has faced some criticism for remaining silent after finding out about Bryant's death, but the Los Angeles Lakers forward poured out his heart in a post on Monday.
"I’m Not Ready but here I go," he wrote below a slideshow of images of himself sharing moments with Bryant. "Man I sitting here trying to write something for this post but every time I try I begin crying again just thinking about you, niece Gigi and the friendship/bond/brotherhood we had!
"I literally just heard your voice Sunday morning before I left Philly to head back to LA. Didn’t think for one bit in a million years that would be the last conversation we’d have. WTF!! I’m heartbroken and devastated my brother!! Man I love you big bro.
"My heart goes to Vanessa and the kids. I promise you I’ll continue your legacy man! You mean so much to us all here especially #LakerNation and it’s my responsibility to put this shit on my back and keep it going!! Please give me the strength from the heavens above and watch over me! I got US here! There’s so much more I want to say but just can’t right now because I can’t get through it! Until we meet again my brother!! #Mamba4Life #Gigi4Life."
LeBron had passed Kobe as the NBA's third all-time leading scorer less than 24 hours before the latter's demise, scoring 29 points in a loss against the Philadelphia 76ers to move past the former Laker.
Bryant's final tweet was one congratulating the new face of the Lakers franchise. His final Instagram post was also LeBron-related.
The four-time MVP was visibly distraught after getting off a plane when he returned to Los Angeles on Sunday and, while footage of him walking across the tarmac wasn't all that clear, he moved with the gait of a man who had little idea what was going on around him.
Surely, the criticism over his delay as it pertains to a public tribute is unwarranted. We imagine he reached out to Kobe's family at the soonest and it must have been very difficult to post anything on social media after experiencing something as traumatic.