West beats East in Kobe Bryant’s final NBA All-Star Game

Contrary to the typical flashy, all-for-show, fan-focused event, the 2016 NBA All Star Game paid tribute to the man who has celebrated his 18th and final All-Star game.

The NBA’s annual mid-season classic, which pits the league’s best against each other in a fierce battle to see who can make the most highlight plays, packed the Air Canada Centre in Toronto on Sunday, the first time the All-star game was played outside the U.S. But that’s not how All-Star weekend had played itself out at first.

Prior to the game’s opening tip, NBA great Magic Johnson lauded the 37-year-old Kobe Bryant a pair of tribute videos featuring some career highlights interspersed with messages of thanks from a handful of fellow NBA players. Fireworks burst behind him as he entered his final All-Star game.

“It was really special,” Bryant told The Associated Press. “Those are the things you don’t get a chance to hear when you’re competing against each other. To hear those stories now, you have such a deep sense of appreciation and such a brotherhood from all the years of competing against each other. It just felt good.”