the untimely passing Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna. As tributes poured out on social media and, many his friends in the public eye — those who had the chance to meet him or play him in the NBA — have spoke out to discuss his greatness and what he meant to the sport.

, a die-hard Lakers fan, went on ESPN’s The Jump where he discussed . One the most heartbreaking parts the interview, though, is when he revealed what happened when he first got the news. He explained that he received the news but he immediately texted Kobe “to see if he would hit me back.”

“And when I didn’t get it back, you don’t immediately start to worry because he’s Kobe and he always gets back sooner or later,” he said. More than just a player, Kobe was a father and Ice Cube expressed his condolences to Vanessa Bryant, their kids, and all their family.

“Me personally, I don’t have too many heroes that’s younger than me, and that was one them,” he said. “It’s pround but I think more about his family and I hope the city wraps their arms around the family and embrace them as much as they embraced Kobe.”

Peep the clip below.