Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin honored Kobe Bryant by wearing number No. 24 during warm-ups prior to the game against the Nashville Predators Wednesday.
Bryant wore No. 8 for the Los Angeles Lakers for the first part of his career but then switched to No. 24 before the 2006-2007 season. According to CBSSports, Bryant is the only player in NBA history to have two jersey numbers retired with the same team.
Bryant and his daughter Gianna, along with seven others, were tragically killed in a helicopter crash Sunday.
8 —> 24
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) January 29, 2020
For Kobe. pic.twitter.com/EZvtTj0hjJ
Ovechkin’s number No. 24 jersey will be signed and put up for auction benefitting the Kobe & Vanessa Bryant Family Foundation. Details of the auction will be shared at a later date per the Capitals website.
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Scott Charles is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @ScottMCharles.