On opening night on Tuesday, Celtics forward Gordon Hayward suffered a catastrophic injury that rocked the NBA world just minutes into his debut with the Boston Celtics.
The response across the league was instantaneous and overwhelmingly positive as players across the league, Lakers included, offered support for Hayward.
Prayers up for Gordon 🙏🏽🙏🏽
— Josh Hart (@joshhart) October 18, 2017
Oh my god…Gordon Hayward… Nobody deserves that 😔
— Alex Caruso (@ACFresh21) October 18, 2017
Praying for a speedy recovery for @gordonhayward.
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) October 18, 2017
Sick to my stomach still…. worst part of sports
— Larry Nance Jr (@Larrydn22) October 18, 2017
Thoughts and prayers with Gordon Hayward. Wishing a speeding recovery
— Luol Deng (@LuolDeng9) October 18, 2017
Why does this happens
— Ivica Zubac (@ivicazubac) October 18, 2017
One of the strongest responses across the league, though, came from Kobe Bryant on Instagram on Wednesday morning.
Bryant and Hayward have a history together as the two worked out together two summers ago. Even more, Bryant has his history with season-ending injuries, including the torn Achilles that started the downturn of his career.
Seeing the NBA community band together around a player and a situation like that of Hayward’s is great to see. The response was instantaneous and spoke volumes not only how much respect a player like Hayward has earned, but how much of a brotherhood the league is.
