“I Cried Like a Baby”: Comedian Dave Chappelle Pays an Emotional Tribute to Kobe Bryant in his Latest Netflix Special

Comedian Dave Chappelle’s latest Netflix special is called 8:46. The reason behind the title is that 8 minutes and 46 seconds was the exact time the Minneapolis police officer had his knee on George Floyd’s neck. He discusses racism and police brutality and other issues in the country. He also pays tribute to the late Kobe Bryant in the 27-minute video.

In the video, he says, “I loved Kobe Bryant. He died the day I won a Grammy. That was why I didn’t show up at the Grammy’s because Kobe died. They had both of his f***ing jersey numbers hanging up — 8 and 24 — well, that’s my birthday. I cried like a baby.”

He was spotted in the crowd during the Grammys however the pain in his voice explains how he must have not felt like stepping on that stage that day.

David Chappelle recalls Kobe Bryant and his last game

While speaking about the police officers who got shot in Dallas in 2016, Chappelle says it was like the end of the world. He says the only reason the world didn’t end was that Kobe Bryant was playing his last game at the same time and dropped 60. While the shooting incident was in June and Kobe’s last game was in April, one can see that Chappelle was going through a lot already which may have fogged the details.

In that last game he played, Bryant became the oldest player to score 60 points. With chants of MVP echoing through the stadium, Bryant led the team to a fantastic comeback. They were trailing for almost the entire game. In the last two minutes, the Lakers took control, overturning an eight-point deficit as Bryant’s last game ended like a fairytale. His final box score read: 60 points, 4 assists, and 4 rebounds.

The following year, in December 2017, Bryant’s two jerseys, 8 and 24, were lifted to the rafters. With that, he became the only player in NBA history to have two jersey numbers retired with the same team.

It has been almost five months since Bryant passed away. But it doesn’t seem like anyone has truly got over it.