Kobe Bryant was a killer.
That’s what you might remember most about the Los Angeles Lakers icon once he finally retires after a storied 20-year run in the NBA. Through five championships, two Finals MVPs, two scoring titles, two Olympic gold medals, and a mind-boggling 18 All-Star appearances, Bryant’s maniacal intensity and commitment to excellence never wavered.
His all-hours and always-saturated workout schedule is legendary. He competed just as hard in practices as he did in games. And his individual will to win in the clutch, often coming against the team-first principles of basketball, is perhaps unparalleled in league history.
Bryant was über-talented; 6’6 wings with remarkably natural athleticism, a picture-perfect shooting stroke, and absolutely effortless handle will never fail to succeed. But what set Mamba apart from similarly gifted stars was his unrelenting drive to be the best – a trait that occasionally and famously manifested him as a loathsome antagonist to opposing players and even teammates and coaches.
But Bryant the player is not Bryant the man. As Complex’s fascinating collection of rare tidbits about him makes abundantly clear, the future Hall of Famer can be as “Charmin soft” off the floor as he is rock hard on it.
These stories deserve a read in full. Memories of the night Bryant tore his Achilles in 2013 will be especially affecting for his legion of fans across the globe. For us, though, heartwarming anecdotes like the ones below stick out most.
Here’s Fernando Gonzales, the Lakers’ longtime Spanish play-by-play man, remembering the time Bryant would make his young son’s day.
“”It was in Anaheim waiting for a preseason game at the beginning of his career, we were talking about nothing for about 15 minutes. And, I was telling him a story about how my kid who loved Kobe, was asking me if I’d ever had an interaction with you, and at the time, I told my son, no. And Kobe said, ‘’From now on, you can tell your kid that now, you and me are friends.'”
ESPN’s Dave McMenamin played in the same high school basketball district as Los Angeles’ superstar. The scribe mentioned his prep alma mater upon introducing himself to Bryant, and recollects a time much later when Bryant playfully chided the could-be rivals.
“I asked Kobe about a particularly fervent celebration he had with Shannon Brown—he basically tackled the Lakers’ backup guard on the court after Brown made a big play. ‘C’mon, Dave, this isn’t the Central League, this is the playoffs,’ Kobe quipped. That’s the league our high schools competed in. It was a quick-witted callback joke to the first conversation we ever had. When the presser was over, I caught up to Kobe in the hallway as he made his way out of the arena. ‘Good one,’ I said. ‘Hey, I was excited,’ he said, before catching me off guard and body checking me much the same way he did to Brown.”
Lakers radio man John Ireland recalls the time Bryant offered to “buy” him a beer – or two, or three, or four – in a hotel bar after the team clinched a playoff series.
“So, our whole travel party is in the bar and Kobe is in the corner and motions over to me and goes, ‘Hey John, you want a beer? And I go, ‘Hey Kobe you don’t have to buy me a beer.’ And Kobe has this smirk on his face and points down. And, I look down and there are probably 17 or 18 opened, but totally full beers. What had been happening prior to me getting there, were fans going ‘I’ve always wanted to buy you a beer!’ And so, he just says thank you very much and he takes it and puts it down on the floor. I went back after the first one and go, ‘Can I take another? And he goes trust me, ‘There’s no way we’re going to drink all of these.”
That’s not the Kobe you’ve grown to love, right?
That he’s as caring and personable as anyone else makes Bryant’s remarkable dedication and tenacity all the more impressive. Some players can’t separate their basketball personas from ones of daily life. That’s understandable. This is professional sports, after all, and they’ve worked tirelessly to reach the peak of an incredibly unique and demanding profession.
But Bryant, like always, is different. And as his career winds down, it’s time people appreciate him for the seemingly normal, affable, and caring person he is off the floor as he is “Mamba” on it.
(Via Complex)
