Carmelo Anthony will miss game against Lakers days after Kobe Bryant’s death

Carmelo Anthony will not be in the building with the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night when the Lakers honor Kobe Bryant in the team’s first game since his tragic death.

Anthony, who had a close relationship with Bryant, wrote a lengthy tribute earlier this week on Instagram, sharing that Bryant had told him he planned on attending Friday’s game at Staples Center.

“I hate when I have so much to say but I can’t put any of it into words. The times I have the most to say are the times that I can’t talk. I’m screaming inside but I can’t be heard,” Anthony wrote on Tuesday.

The team said he didn’t travel due to “personal reasons.” He joins Chris Paul and Kyrie Irving as players who have missed games due to Bryant’s death.

Friday will be the Lakers first game since a helicopter crash took the lives of Bryant, his daughter Gianna; John, Keri and Alyssa Altobelli; Sarah and Payton Chester; Christina Mauser and Ara Zobayan on Sunday morning.

The Lakers were scheduled to play Tuesday against the Clippers, but that game was postponed.