Pau Gasol, the perfect complement to Kobe Bryant, was given the best possible tribute by his former team: The Lakers retired his jersey.

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"I mean life moves very fast, doesn't it? In the blink of an eye, you can be a kid playing basketball with your friends at your school, then all of a sudden, 

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you're making your dream come true," Gasol said earlier during the Lakers' 112-103 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night. 

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"But tonight, it really exceeds any of my dreams or expectations because it means so much. 

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And obviously with Kobe, it just adds up to something meaningful and powerful, and sad and happy, and painful and joyous." .

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"It's a lot of things."

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It was a full-circle kind of night for Gasol, who was honored by the Lakers on a night when they were playing the team that traded him to Los Angeles. 

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His younger brother Mark, who was part of a trade going the opposite direction from Los Angeles to Memphis, was in attendance to boot.

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A black veil was lowered during the halftime ceremony, revealing Gasol's No. 16 placed in the rafters next to Bryant's Nos. 8 and 24.

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Gasol addressed the crowd at center court during a break between the second and third quarters, accompanied by his parents, brothers, wife and children, 

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as well as Lakers governor Jenny Buss, Lakers vice president and general manager of basketball operations Rob Pelinka and Vanessa Bryant was also present. , 

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making her first public appearance at the Crypto.com Arena since her late husband's memorial service.

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