A sombre mood hung over the NBA on Sunday as matches were played amid shock and tributes flowed for Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant following his death.
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The 41-year-old and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna were among nine people killed in a helicopter crash near Calabasas, California.
For some, the news was too much for them to take the court.
Brooklyn Nets star and close friend Kyrie Irving couldn't bring himself to play in New York.
Irving was at Madison Square Garden and warming up before leaving after learning the news about Bryant.
Julius Randle, who began his career as Bryant's teammate, had 22 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Knicks to a 110-97 victory.
In Denver, several Nuggets players sat at their lockers staring at their phones in disbelief as the Bryant news started to appear before the day's first match, a home clash with Houston Rockets.
The Nuggets held a moment of silence before the tip-off, with Tyson Chandler and P.J. Tucker visibly upset during the tribute. Austin Rivers covered his eyes with his hand and had a tribute to Bryant on his shoes. So did Tucker, who wrote "There will never be another".
Denver won the game 117-110 as Nikola Jokic finished with 24 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists for his ninth triple-double of the season.
A moment of silence was also held in San Antonio where the defending champion Toronto Raptors earned a 110-106 victory over the Spurs. The two teams let the 24-second shot clock run out at the start of the game before Pascal Siakam scored 35 points star in the road win.
2019 top NBA draft pick Zion Williamson, who was born around three weeks after Bryant won his first of five NBA championships, had his first double-double (21 points, 11 rebounds) as an NBA player. New Orleans won for the first time with him in the lineup, 123-108 over the visiting Boston Celtics.
Before the singing of the national anthem, the Pelicans held a 24-second moment of silence before the teams followed the lead of the Spurs and Raptors by dribbling out the shot clock on their first possessions.
The Lakers' Los Angeles rivals, the Clippers, scored a 112-97 victory over the Magic in Orlando with Kawhi Leonard's 31 points and 14 rebounds leading the way.
Atlanta guard Trae Young responded to his idol's death by producing 45 points and 14 assists to help the Hawks defeat Washington Wizards 152-133. Young began the game wearing No. 8, Bryant's original jersey number, before changing into his usual No. 11. Young wore Bryant's No. 24 on the back of his shoes.
Damian Lillard had 50 points and 13 assists to become the first Portland player with 40-plus points in three straight games. The Trail Blazers beat Indiana Pacers 139-129 while Ja Morant scored 23 points to lead the Grizzlies to a 114-109 win over Phoenix Suns in Memphis.
Australian Associated Press
