It’s been a somber couple of days in the sports world, transcending all sports and affecting fans across the world.
Kobe Bryant, former NBA superstar, along with eight others, including one of his daughters, was taken from this world too early in a tragic helicopter crash in Calabasas, California, on Jan. 26.
Bryant, a five-time NBA Champion, two-time Finals MVP and eighteen-time NBA All-Star, was an idol for many sports fans both young and old. His work ethic and amazing play provided entertainment for not only Los Angeles Lakers fans, the team he spent his entire career with from 1996-2016, but for people who didn’t even consider themselves basketball fans.
I grew up in a generation of kids who shouted “Kobe!” whenever they threw trash into a trashcan – a tradition I hope never dies. Bryant is, and will always be, a legend and an inspiration.
Among the great ambassadors of the sports world, like hockey’s Wayne Gretzky, football’s Peyton Manning and fellow basketball legend Michael Jordan, Bryant ranks near the top.
In this column, I want to pay my respects to the man that gave everything he had to the game of basketball from start to finish. I want to focus on Bryant the basketball legend and icon of hard work.
Despite playing his entire career with the Lakers, Bryant was actually drafted 13th overall in 1996 by the Charolette Hornets. The Lakers acquired Bryant via trade before he ever put on a Hornets jersey.
The rest at that point is history. The Lakers, from Bryant’s rookie season in 1996-97, to 2011-12, made the playoffs every year except for 2004-05. With the help of fellow superstar Shaquille O’Neal and head coach Phil Jackson, the Lakers embarked on a three-peat that went from 2000-2002.
The Lakers went a few years without winning another title. Despite that, Bryant was still putting up solid numbers and racked up even more accolades, such as being named to the NBA All-Star team seemingly every year, making the All-NBA First Team all but one year in between his title runs.
The Lakers, still having Jackson but not Neal, pulled off another championship run in 2009 and 2010, where Bryant won Finals MVP in both. The 2010 title would be Bryant’s last, but the “Black Mamba” continued to play great basketball until his retirement in 2016.
In his last game in the NBA, a 37-year-old Bryant put up an absurd 60 points against the Utah Jazz. Unfortunately, the Lakers went 17-65 that year, and Bryant’s last playoff appearance was in 2012.
What I, and I’m sure many others, took away from Bryant was his insane work ethic. Go on YouTube and look up some of his speeches. Whatever goal you’re trying to accomplish, listening to Bryant will give you that motivation to keep grinding.
It was obvious that Bryant loved the game of basketball. He was willing to go above and beyond and put in more work than anybody to accomplish his goals on the court. The “Mamba Mentality,” named after his nickname, inspired many to work harder.
The loss of Bryant and his daughter will continue to send shockwaves throughout the sports community. The Lakers-Clippers game that was set to occur this week has been postponed to a later date, which is understandable because the organization needs time to grieve. But Bryant would’ve wanted the game to go on.
It’s important that we all take time to grieve, but I implore everyone to take a second and show family and friends some love. Life is too short, and it can end at any moment. Cherish those close to you.
I’ll end this column with a quote from former U.S. Army General George S. Patton: “It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.”
Rest in Peace, Mamba.
Photo Credit / Wikimedia Commons
