NBA players and legends, as well as celebrities, reacted to Kobe Bryant’s announcement that he would retire from playing basketball after this season, ending his 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Fans and friends from the sports industry took to Twitter to congratulate the Laker legend on his retirement. Former Lakers Pau Gasol, who helped the “Black Mamba” win back-to-back championships in 2009 and 2010, was one of the many who thanked Bryant for the “incredible moments together on and off the court.”

Rick Fox, another former Laker who won three championships with Bryant in the 2000-2002 season, admitted he was sad to find out about the retirement, but was honoured to have represented the purple and gold team with him.

Meanwhile, Hollywood stars also took to social media to pay their respects to one of the greatest basketball players to surface the earth. Justin Timberlake tweeted that Bryant was one of the “true kings of the game.” American rapper Lupe Fiasco also tweeted a shout-out to Bryant, calling him “one of the greatest of all time.”

Bryant wrote a poem, titled “Dear Basketball,” which was posted on The Players Tribune to announce his decision to finally retire from the NBA. The 37-year-old Bryant mentioned in his poem that his body can no longer cope up to the sport’s physicality and he is “ready to let go” of the game that made him a cult-figure around the globe.

''My heart can take the pounding. My mind can handle the grind. But my body knows it's time to say goodbye,'' Bryant wrote. ''And that's OK. I'm ready to let you go.”

However, Lakers head coach Byron Scott believes Bryant still has a year left in his tank and insisted that the five-time NBA champ could still show some of his greatest performance in the past.

"I thought he probably had at least had another year in him," Scott told Baxter Holmes of ESPN. "I know his purpose is to finish out this season and play.”

Bryant’s last three seasons have ended early due to injuries, playing only 41 games over the last two years. This season, he is posting a career-low of 31.5 in shooting percentage, making him the lowest in the league among players who had taken at least 150 attempts. Bryant’s three-point percentage was also a career-low at 19.5, partially contributing to the Lakers’ potentially doomed season.

Bryant went straight from high school in Philadelphia to the Lakers in 1996 and won five championships with the Lakers. His 17-time All-Star selection with the franchise is the longest tenure with one team in NBA history.

Here are some of the notable reactions on Twitter:

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