Back to the Washington Wizards Newsfeed

Wizards, Hawks honor Kobe Bryant to start game

The stunning death of Kobe Bryant in a helicopter crash Sunday continued to grip the sports world throughout the evening.

The Washington Wizards and Atlanta Hawks honored the man who wore two jersey numbers in his career, first No. 8, then No. 24, by opening their game in Atlanta with an eight-second violation and a 24-second shot-clock violation.

The Hawks won the tipoff, and All-Star guard Trae Young held the ball in the backcourt for eight seconds, triggering a whistle. Young, who has trained with Bryant before, started the game wearing a No.