Kobe Bryant’s Legacy Honored At The NBA All-Star Game — Highlights HERE!

B.D.

Sunday night’s NBA All-Star Game was truly one for the history books!

Team LeBron came back late to beat Team Giannis 157-155 on the court in what turned out to be a thrilling game, even by the league’s sky-high All-Star standards! But the real story here — and almost all the memorable moments from the entire weekend — primarily centered itself on the impressive memorials and moments dedicated to Kobe Bryant.

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Everybody on LeBron James‘ team wore the number 2 (in honor of Gianna Bryant), while everybody on the opposing side rocked the familiar 24 for Kobe. And there was plenty of star power available yesterday evening for the big game, too!

Considering the whole thing was held in Chicago, native celebs from Common and Dwyane Wade to Michael Jordan, Chance the Rapper, Jennifer Hudson, and even Barack Obama himself made appearances at various points. So ICYMI, here are all the most important and memorable moments from last night’s incredible All-Star affair!

Jennifer Hudson

Speaking of the Chicago native Hudson, she delivered an incredible tribute to Kobe in the minutes leading up to the game, as you can see (below):

Seriously… not a dry eye in the house anywhere after that.

Wow!!!

Common

The NBA called on Common to do a few different things before the game’s tip-off, and his unique presence and Windy City ties gave the event a serious feeling of importance.

For one, he opened up the evening with his own spoken-word love letter to the Illinois city he calls home:

And later in the pre-game festivities, Common was joined by Jordan, Obama, and a large group other high-profile Chicago celebs and local icons to set the stage for the night and get things warmed up:

Loves it!

Anyone watching from the Windy City must’ve been so proud!!!

Shaquille O’Neal

Kobe’s longtime former teammate, in attendance at All-Star Weekend working on air for TNT, took more time to reflect on the late star’s legacy at one point on Sunday.

Speaking to E! News, the legendary big man opened up about his favorite Mamba memories, recalling how sweet Kobe always was with the O’Neal children:

“Just him taking the time to talk to my kids. And because of that, unfortunately for me, even though I was a great player, I’m not my kids’ favorite player… For [Kobe] to take the time to text my babies, check up on them… It was special. I reciprocated the same energy when I saw his kids. I always walked up to them and said, ‘Hey beautiful ladies. My name is uncle Shaq.'”

Awww! That’s so cute!

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BTW, “Uncle Shaq” had another great moment at All-Star Weekend, too.

During the Slam Dunk Contest on Saturday night, while live on air with the TNT crew, the former basketball superstar pulled a random baby out of the crowd and tried to interview him on national television:

Sorry, Uncle Shaq, but that kid seriously gave you the cold shoulder!

LOLz!!!!

Kimye

The action didn’t just take place on the court come game time, though as the A-listers were out in full force to watch the whole thing go down, too!

As you can see (below), Kim Kardashian West and Kanye West had an epic date night sitting courtside for the memorable evening:

Too cute!

And there you go, another A-list Chicago native in Yeezy… those Chi-town ties run deep, y’all!!!

The MVP Award

This one was a particularly good move by the NBA.

At the very start of All-Star Weekend, league commissioner Adam Silver announced the All-Star Game MVP Award would be re-named in Kobe’s honor:

Wonderful!

Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard won the inaugural Kobe Bryant MVP Award at the end of the evening, and spoke about what it meant, too:

What. A. Night.

Related: The Investigation Into The Helicopter Crash Itself Continues…

What’d U think of everything here, Perezcious readers?! The NBA knows how to put on a show, don’t they?!

They seriously didn’t disappoint on Sunday — hitting all the right notes with Kobe’s legacy while also showing off a VERY fun game.

Sound OFF with your take on all this and more in the comments (below)!!!

[Image via WENN/Avalon/Instar]

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