Ja Morant addressed the media with a heavy voice. Behind him was a signed purple-and-gold jersey with the name ‘Bryant’ blazed across it, and the number 24 under the name. Next to it was Morant’s own Beale Street Blue jersey that he’d just played a game in.

you wit me tonight my guy 🥺

24 🐍 x 12 😴 @kobebryant pic.twitter.com/LIQf827bjI — Ja Morant (@JaMorant) January 26, 2020

Morant declined to reveal the story behind the signed jersey. But it clearly meant a lot to him, considering what had just transpired. He tried to honor the day by finishing the game with 24 points and eight assists. He fell just short, ending the night with 23 points.

“I feel like every kid, when you were young, anything you had to throw in the trash, you shoot it and say ‘Kobe,’” Morant said. “That’s all I grew up watching. That’s my guy. It’s just sad today.”

Morant, like the rest of the NBA, had an impossible job to perform on Sunday. Coaches, players and league personnel heard the news at the same time as the rest of the world. Then, they went to work and processed the news in real-time, in front of fans and reporters and TV cameras.

Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven other passengers died in a helicopter crash. That sentence will never make sense. Bryant was 41. Four years after retirement, he was very much still writing and shaping his career arc. Gianna’s story had barely begun. She was well on her way to following her father’s footsteps as a basketball player. That opportunity was stolen for her. Bryant’s wife, Vanessa, and their remaining three daughters are left to deal with the aftermath. It’s a tragedy that defies belief. It will never feel real.

Writing about their deaths through the lens of Sunday’s NBA games feels like a trivial task. The Grizzlies, like the rest of the league and world, were in shock. TMZ broke the news of Kobe’s death at 1:32 p.m Central Time. Around 2:30 p.m., the Nuggets and Rockets tipped off their Sunday matinee. Less than an hour later, Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins addressed the media during his pregame availability. Suns coach Monty Williams followed 15 minutes after.

Neither could properly put the sadness of the day into words because what they were feeling was beyond description. They weren’t granted any time to properly grieve. Still, they tried to express their emotions. That they had to coach a basketball game, as did 18 other coaches, feels simultaneously fitting and unfair, depending on who you ask. Is it what Kobe would have wanted? Maybe. We’ll never know.

“Unbelievable legacy,” Jenkins said before the game. “I wish we weren’t talking about this today. It’s a tragedy. It’s a shock. We’re talking about an individual that meant so much.”

The NBA requires teams to open the locker room to media before games, but it made an exception on Sunday. The Grizzlies decided to skip their usual pregame walkthrough. Instead, they went to the locker room, talked about the situation and supported each other.

The Grizzlies and Suns wanted to honor Bryant in some way and agreed on a joint tribute. Memphis won the opening tip and Morant dribbled out the 24-second shot clock. Ricky Rubio picked up an eight-second violation the following possession. The jumbotron found a Lakers jersey in the audience. Fans cheered, chanted ‘Kobe!’ and gave a standing ovation.

Standing ovation as Ja Morant runs out the 24-second shot clock in honor of Kobe Bryant and Gianna. Then Ricky Rubio picks up an eight-second violation. Then, more cheers after a man holding a Kobe jersey is shown on the Jumbotron pic.twitter.com/m6c3AiSu0e — Omari Sankofa II (@omarisankofa) January 26, 2020

“For the players on the court to recognize the impact that those two possessions could have to bring, hopefully, a celebration in a very, very tough time,” Jenkins said after the game. “As I said, I think those other teams are doing the same thing. It’s our small part. Now it’s on us to continue to celebrate this beautiful legacy gone way too soon.”

That the Grizzlies played the Suns mere hours after Kobe’s death makes the game inconsequential. Memphis turned the ball over 25 times, and many of them were unforced. Phoenix shot 38 percent from the field. Three players stepped out of bounds within the first three minutes of the game.

The Grizzlies are a young team, with zero players on the active roster older than 30. Kobe’s first game, on Nov. 11, 1996, predates the births of four players on the team. Three others were born less than a year before his first game.

None of the players had deep, personal relationships with Bryant. But they were impacted by his legacy, one way or another. De’Anthony Melton and Solomon Hill are Los Angeles guys. Bryant was Dillon Brooks’ favorite player, and Brooks wears No. 24 in his honor.

“When I first got the news, I was like everybody else. I didn’t believe it at first,” Melton said. “I just kept doing research and there were more reports coming out. I was praying, texting my people. They were texting me. I was just trying to stay positive and get ready for the game. We had a game later. Just have to lock in on that.”

Melton was born in North Hollywood and grew up a Clippers fan. The Lakers-Clippers rivalry defined his childhood. If you liked the Lakers, you loved Kobe. If you liked the Clippers, you respected Kobe. Melton said he loved and respected Kobe.

“Icon,” Melton said. “The love he got around the city, you could see everywhere. He got love everywhere. If you didn’t love him, you respected him. He was one of the most respected people, and especially being from L.A., you want to consider him L.A. He wasn’t from there, but he gave a lot to the city, and he was loyal to the city. You can’t ask for much more, his loyalty. He provided it, he showed it.”

Hill, who has a young daughter, was able to offer his perspective on Kobe the father. As a child and teenager, Hill’s fandom of the NBA was largely defined by the Kobe and Shaq tandem. He was later impressed by Bryant winning two rings without Shaq and adding a new chapter to his legacy. Hill has now transitioned into adulthood and started his own family. As he reflected on Bryant’s life on Sunday, the basketball aspect wasn’t at the forefront of his mind.

“Honestly, I could care less about Kobe the basketball player,” Hill. “I’m more hurt that Kobe has four girls. He has two young babies, I think his oldest is 17 and Gigi was 13. That’s tough. As a guy who wants more girls — I want daughters, I’m cool with having girls. That’s what I look forward to. That’s what I want to be known for. I couldn’t care less about being in the Hall of Fame or All-Star. I want to be an All-Star father. I want to be in the Hall of Fame for being a husband or a dad. That’s what I want. For him to be in a position where we’re seeing a beautiful relationship between him and his daughter not only blossom for her, but blossom for him speaking out about the WNBA … (WNBA players) just went and got a new CBA. Being someone that can speak up about the women’s game, and that’s who he is, says a lot. And it says a lot about his daughter as well.”

The game is over, and now the Grizzlies will have some time to properly reflect and grieve. The deaths of Kobe and Gianna Bryant will never make sense. But Jenkins suggested that the team can take something away from coming together on Sunday.

“It’s very raw and emotional right now,” Jenkins said. “Today’s game pales in comparison to the new reality we face without one of the best in the game.”

(Top photo Joe Murphy / NBAE via Getty Images)