Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant recently conducted a tandem interview for the New York Times Arianna Huffington, renowned author and founder of The Huffington Post. As surprising as that may be to you – which it shouldn’t if you’ve been reading Dime – more so might be the fact that Bryant apparently perfected his signature fadeaway jumper after gleaning influence from the body composition of cheetahs in full sprint.
Yes, cheetahs. Kobe’s impossibly difficult fallaways might have been originated from idol Michael Jordan, but they didn’t become so effective until he looked to the wild for influence. From the must-read interview of Bryant and Huffington proctored by Philip Galanes of The Times:
Bryant: …When you watch me shoot my fadeaway jumper, you’ll notice my leg is always extended. I had problems making that shot in the past. It’s tough. So one day I’m watching the Discovery Channel and see a cheetah hunting. When the cheetah runs, its tail always gives it balance, even if it’s cutting a sharp angle. And that’s when I was like: My leg could be the tail, right?
Huffington: That’s amazing.
Bryant: Inspiration surrounds us.
Add this to the ever-growing stable of amazing Kobe factoids.
As you clearly tell watching Lakers games and see in the photo above, Bryant indeed extends one leg when shooting fadeaways. And though it’s hard to believe he really learned that trick of the trade from a preying cheetah’s tail, many aspects of Bryant’s playing career seem similarly outlandish.
It seems like we’ve been afforded more access to Kobe over the past few months than in the previous several years combined. He knows his basketball end is near, and is suddenly happy to let us get frequent glimpses of the wholly unique process that’s propelled him to such greatness as a result.
And here’s hoping Bryant comes close to reaching the exalted level of play he so clearly demands over the next two seasons. Anyone that puts forth such incredible and varied dedication deserves for it to pay off.
What do you think?
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