Sports World Shaken By CT Tragedy

Sports world shaken by tragedy

Updated: December 15, 2012, 1:05 AM ET
ESPN.com news services

Stars from several different sports took to Twitter on Friday to try and cope with the school shooting in Connecticut, and the NFL asked each of its teams to observe a moment of silence before this weekend's games to pay respect to the victims.

A man killed his mother at home and then opened fire inside the elementary school where she taught, slaying 26 people, including 20 children. The 20-year-old killer, carrying two handguns, then committed suicide at the school.

"It's awful, just an awful day. It really, really is," Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers said before his team's game at Houston. "This is our jobs. This is not a game for us, it is what we do but when something like this happens, it supersedes job and everything else. As a parent -- I don't know -- this is just awful, awful what happened."

Struggling to stay composed, Cleveland Cavaliers coach Byron Scott paused a couple of times as talked about the tragedy in Newtown, a small community about 60 miles northeast of New York City.

"I have three healthy kids and a beautiful granddaughter," he said. "When you hear about kids who are that young and don't get a chance to live because of something that's so senseless as somebody going in and doing the things that this person did, I think it affects everybody. It puts everything in the right perspective as well. As much as we love this game, this doesn't mean nothing."

From the full slate of NBA games to high school and college football finals, there were moments of silences at sporting events of all sizes. The overhead videoboard at the Barclays Center showed a candle and the town seal of Newtown as the Nets and Pistons paused for reflection before their game in Brooklyn.

Oklahoma City star Kevin Durant wrote "Newtown CT" on his right sneaker for the Thunder's 113-103 victory over Sacramento.

The NFL sent a memo asking for each of its teams to observe a moment of silence before this weekend's games.

"This shocking event has brought the nation together in grieving for the victims and their families as well as the survivors," the note read. "We believe it is appropriate and important for us to collectively recognize and participate in the grieving process at our games this weekend, as we have done on other occasions."

Many athletes took to social media websites to process what happened, discussing their shock and horror, and openly worrying about their kids at school.

"Innocent victims just gone," Miami Heat star LeBron James said in a series of posts on Twitter. "This is really messing with my mind. Kids is everything to me! And of course i have 2 of my own in elementary school as well. I can't imagine it happening to my kids school. I and the rest of the families would be devastated! Something has to be done."

"I don't know if any of you have family, friends or connections to the horror that took place today in Connecticut. Let us all pray for them. The devastation is immeasurable," Lakers star Kobe Bryant wrote on his Facebook page.

Golfer John Daly talked about home schooling his children, and outspoken Minnesota Vikings punter Chris Kluwe wondered about the road ahead.

"The way we deal with this tragedy in CT will tell us a lot about where we're headed as a society. Do we only address the symptoms (i.e. just gun control laws)? Or do we also address the disease -- how we treat each other and those who need help," Kluwe said in a couple of posts on Twitter.

As news spread of Friday's deadly shooting in Newtown, Conn., NBA players, coaches and others were among the many who had strong emotional reactions on Twitter. Here's a sampling of their thoughts. Reactions

There also was some anger.

Montreal Canadiens captain Brian Gionta tweeted: "Not sure if there is anything lower than harming innocent children." He ended the tweet with a hashtag of "coward," then was critical of the media interviewing young children outside the school.

"At some point, we've got to get past bureaucracy and all the nonsense and do something about this so our kids can be safe," said New Orleans Hornets coach Monty Williams, who has five children ranging in age from 2 to 14.

"If we can go to outer space and take care of trees and rivers and animals, we can do a better job of taking care of our kids. It's just a sad situation."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.