Kobe Bean Bryant
I wrote an essay when he retired that sums up why he is my favorite player.
Very long but TLDR; he's the first player I really grew up watching and is one of the main reasons I fell in love with the game.
I wrote an essay when he retired that sums up why he is my favorite player.
#ThankYouKobe, thank you for an amazing career and the legendary moments that you have provided to the game of basketball over the last 20 years. Your accomplishments and accolades on the court are well known and documented; 5 time NBA Champion,18-time NBA All-Star,15 All-NBA Team selections, 12-time All-Defensive Team selections, 2008 NBA MVP, 2 time NBA Finals MVP, 2 time scoring champion, and many, many more.
But what a lot of people don't know is the profound impact that you had on a generation of fans, such as myself, who not saw you grow up on the court, but also grew up with you.
My Story
2000-2004
As a child growing up in Chicago in the 90's, I was just like any other kid in city, had Air Jordan shoes, Bulls gear from head to toe and a 23 jersey in my closet. My family was all in on the Bulls, but being as young as I was I wasn't able to appreciate the greatness of the 90's Bulls and the magnitude of impact that those teams had on my city and their love for the game. It wasn't until the start of the new millennia that I would finally learn what it was to be a fan of the NBA.
The year was 2000, fresh off of Y2K, Chicago was a city still in love with the game of basketball and all of the happiness and joy that the Bulls had brought to the city could still be felt. Myself only 8 at the time, having just moved to a new neighborhood, found myself spending most of my time inside while my mom worked 2 jobs to provide for me and my brothers. Like most boys we loved sports mainly due to my uncle, Rudy, who made sure we were exposed to them at an early age. My uncle was always watching sports, baseball, basketball, football you name it and one night I remember him watching the Bulls take on the Los Angeles Lakers. I'm young so I have no idea who was on the Lakers at the time but the one player I noticed was number #8. This is where I would see Kobe for the first time dominating the BEST TEAM IN THE NBA (yeah right lol) I asked my uncle who is #8 and he said, "That's Kobe Bryant" and from there on I was a fan of this guy Kobe Bryant.
Over the course of the next few years I would watch any Lakers games that I could, so much so that I would even have my mom record the late playoff games so that I could watch them the next day. (You The Real MVP Mom) One of my favorite games ever was Game 7 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals against the Kings, which is still one of the greatest series I have ever seen, nostalgia notwithstanding, where the Lakers narrowly defeated the Kings in OT and the Lakers would eventually win the title and 3-Peat. Many will argue that Kobe wasn't the star during that run but he was my star, he was the guy who I had been following for years already so of course I thought he was the man! He was my favorite player and nothing anyone could say could stop me from thinking that.
As we all know now however, 2003 would see the beginning of the change of the public perception of Kobe in the media. His off the court legal struggles, the falling out between him and Shaq, his shift into the villain role. All things people bring up in detriment to Kobe, but to me I was just a kid and had no time to worry about any of that, I just cared about watching my favorite player on the court, playing my favorite sport. Even after the crushing loss to the Pistons in the 2004 Finals, I was still a Kobe fan until the end.
2005-2007
These were the years that really cemented my fandom to Kobe and is the reason why he will forever be my idol and favorite player of all-time. Every night I could turn on ESPN and see Kobe drops 40, Kobe drops 50, hell even Kobe drops 60! I marveled at the sight of how effortless you made it all look. Your individual play was the greatest thing I had ever seen and you did it on such a consistent basis that it would have been easy to take it all for granted, but I didn't I was mesmerized. I would watch interviews on your training regime, I would look up game highlights, I even bought your shoes with money I had saved up from my birthdays. During this time I grew to appreciate you, your work ethic, your dedication, your desire to be not only the best in the league, but the best that you could possibly be. In my eyes, you were the best player in the world, you were the best player I had ever seen.
The all culminated in 2006 with one of the greatest single basketball achievements I will ever see, 81 point in a game. That game you were like an orchestra symphony, hitting every note perfectly! Nobody on that court could stop you! You were on a whole other level, untouchable! I still remember the next day at school were me and my friends spent the entire lunch period talking about how none of us could believe it! Some of us were even saying you were better than MJ (Ok it was me, blasphemy I know) but nevertheless it was an amazing moment that I will never forget.
But alas, you were doing all of these great things but to you they were meaningless. You were the best player in the world, on a team that wasn't going anywhere. After all the trial and tribulations you had endured I felt for you, a great player on a bad team, frustrated that things weren't changing. I was old enough at this point to understand the intricacies of the league and it hurt me to see you play night in and night out, playing your hardest to get your team back to the level that you(and I) had grown accustomed to seeing you at. You wanted what you deserved, a chance at being a winner again.
When the rumors of you coming to the Bulls started to come out, I was ecstatic. KOBE!? ON MY TEAM!? What more could I ask for!? We all know how everything worked out but it was still a cool moment I thought was worth mentioning.
2008-2010
Your signature years. The years that you cemented yourself as one of the greatest players of all-time. (You were already my favorite player of all time) 2008 was your rise back to the top, thanks to the Lakers front-office, you finally had a team you could compete with again and were ready to win again, the Black Mamba had been let loose, you won your first and only MVP(you should have at least 4). You battled and fought hard to get back to the Finals that year, suffering a crushing loss to the Celtics in 6. As a fan this hurt seeing you try so hard but come up short again. But the next season, that season was the season you proved to everyone that your story was not a story that was handed to you, but one you earned, the Kobe Doin' Work season.
A man on a mission, everybody knew you were not going to take this season lightly, you were laser focused with one goal, a ring. As a fan, this was one of the craziest years since it was the beginning of the whole Kobe Vs LeBron debate and who was the best player. Non-stop debates and countless arguments, I was always on your side ready to tear apart anyone's case. That year you proved me right; making light work of Deron Williams and the Jazz, defeating Tracy and Yao narrowly extinguishing the Rockets, teaching young Melo that you were the real master and getting revenge for the Finals defeat against Chauncey and the Nuggets, all leading up the Finals against the Magic. In one of the more lopsided matchup in the Finals in history, you destroyed the Magic and finally became a NBA champion once more. This was one of the best times to be a Kobe Bryant fan, Lil Wayne songs, "Kobe doin' work 24 on my shirt, he the greatest on the court and i'm greatest on the verse" I played that song all summer. You were THE NBA that year and silenced many of your critics.
But you weren't done, oh no you wanted more, you did the same thing the next year, beating the Celtics and getting your 5th ring and again it was like being on cloud 9 as a fan. Debates started up again, but not the usual Kobe Vs LeBron debates, now it was Kobe Vs Jordan, could Kobe pass up the GOAT as the best player to have ever played the game?
2010-2012
And you tried, you really tried but the league had began to change and you fought hard to try get that 6th ring but unfortunately you weren't able to do it. These years I rode with you still supporting and hoping you would find a way to return to the top. These years came and went and you had to stand by and watch and new players took your spot as the best. Everything became about LeBron and the Heat, KD and the Thunder and the media swept you under the rug like you weren't still one of the best players in the league. But hey, networks have agendas and they have to push whats news and looks out for the them. (The Decision was on ESPN for a reason)
Anyways, these years were filled with a bunch of hypotheticals as a fan and who knows you could have passed Jordan had it not been for the league's blocking of the Chris Paul trade but that is something we will never know.
The Injury
This year was a hard year as a fan, you were still fighting hard to get your team back to the Finals, but the team just wasn't there, chemistry was bad and you earned the rep of being a bad teammate. I didn't see this way, I saw it as Kobe demanding the best from his teammates, the same way you demanded the best of yourself. You fought hard to even get the playoffs, maybe too hard, and tore your Achilles tendon. One of the saddest moments of my adult life as a sports fan, was hearing this news after knowing how hard you were playing to even get your team into the position you were in. This was were you cemented yourself as my favorite player of all-time. This injury was devastating, career ending, but you didn't quit, in true Mamba fashion, you went to the line and shot 2 free throws and walked off. Greatness.
2013-Present
Your tried to come back but by now your body had taken too much of a load. You gave 18 years of your life to this game and proved that you were one of the best to ever do it. But that wasn't enough, you fought and fought because you wanted to prove that you could still do it. You showed glimpse but the old saying stays true, father time is undefeated.
Your Last Game
I write this only hours before the final time you will ever take the court again. As a fan and a grown man I find myself reflecting on everything that you have shown and taught me over the last 16 years I have been watching you play. I didn't write one of these when Jeter retired, I didn't write one of these when Peyton retired, but I had to express my feelings when you are retiring because you have inspired me even in my adult years to always try my hardest, remain dedicated, and even when things seem at their worst, if you stay focused and determined you can return to greatness.
Now many people might be reading this and thinking, dude it's just a game and it's just a player and in a way they are right, but what those people don't realize is I grew up with Kobe, I've seen Kobe at his best and at his worst. Kobe is my Michael Jordan. He's been there for my entire time watching the NBA and once he is gone, things will continue to go on and i'll continue to watch because I love the sport, but it will never be the same as the days I would watch VHS tapes of recorded games or when I would ask who is #8?
So #ThankYouKobe for all that you have done for not only the game of basketball but for my life, you will forever be my favorite player and on April, 13, 2016, the game will have said goodbye to one of the best ever to ever play the game and one of the best who ever will play the game.
But what a lot of people don't know is the profound impact that you had on a generation of fans, such as myself, who not saw you grow up on the court, but also grew up with you.
My Story
2000-2004
As a child growing up in Chicago in the 90's, I was just like any other kid in city, had Air Jordan shoes, Bulls gear from head to toe and a 23 jersey in my closet. My family was all in on the Bulls, but being as young as I was I wasn't able to appreciate the greatness of the 90's Bulls and the magnitude of impact that those teams had on my city and their love for the game. It wasn't until the start of the new millennia that I would finally learn what it was to be a fan of the NBA.
The year was 2000, fresh off of Y2K, Chicago was a city still in love with the game of basketball and all of the happiness and joy that the Bulls had brought to the city could still be felt. Myself only 8 at the time, having just moved to a new neighborhood, found myself spending most of my time inside while my mom worked 2 jobs to provide for me and my brothers. Like most boys we loved sports mainly due to my uncle, Rudy, who made sure we were exposed to them at an early age. My uncle was always watching sports, baseball, basketball, football you name it and one night I remember him watching the Bulls take on the Los Angeles Lakers. I'm young so I have no idea who was on the Lakers at the time but the one player I noticed was number #8. This is where I would see Kobe for the first time dominating the BEST TEAM IN THE NBA (yeah right lol) I asked my uncle who is #8 and he said, "That's Kobe Bryant" and from there on I was a fan of this guy Kobe Bryant.
Over the course of the next few years I would watch any Lakers games that I could, so much so that I would even have my mom record the late playoff games so that I could watch them the next day. (You The Real MVP Mom) One of my favorite games ever was Game 7 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals against the Kings, which is still one of the greatest series I have ever seen, nostalgia notwithstanding, where the Lakers narrowly defeated the Kings in OT and the Lakers would eventually win the title and 3-Peat. Many will argue that Kobe wasn't the star during that run but he was my star, he was the guy who I had been following for years already so of course I thought he was the man! He was my favorite player and nothing anyone could say could stop me from thinking that.
As we all know now however, 2003 would see the beginning of the change of the public perception of Kobe in the media. His off the court legal struggles, the falling out between him and Shaq, his shift into the villain role. All things people bring up in detriment to Kobe, but to me I was just a kid and had no time to worry about any of that, I just cared about watching my favorite player on the court, playing my favorite sport. Even after the crushing loss to the Pistons in the 2004 Finals, I was still a Kobe fan until the end.
2005-2007
These were the years that really cemented my fandom to Kobe and is the reason why he will forever be my idol and favorite player of all-time. Every night I could turn on ESPN and see Kobe drops 40, Kobe drops 50, hell even Kobe drops 60! I marveled at the sight of how effortless you made it all look. Your individual play was the greatest thing I had ever seen and you did it on such a consistent basis that it would have been easy to take it all for granted, but I didn't I was mesmerized. I would watch interviews on your training regime, I would look up game highlights, I even bought your shoes with money I had saved up from my birthdays. During this time I grew to appreciate you, your work ethic, your dedication, your desire to be not only the best in the league, but the best that you could possibly be. In my eyes, you were the best player in the world, you were the best player I had ever seen.
The all culminated in 2006 with one of the greatest single basketball achievements I will ever see, 81 point in a game. That game you were like an orchestra symphony, hitting every note perfectly! Nobody on that court could stop you! You were on a whole other level, untouchable! I still remember the next day at school were me and my friends spent the entire lunch period talking about how none of us could believe it! Some of us were even saying you were better than MJ (Ok it was me, blasphemy I know) but nevertheless it was an amazing moment that I will never forget.
But alas, you were doing all of these great things but to you they were meaningless. You were the best player in the world, on a team that wasn't going anywhere. After all the trial and tribulations you had endured I felt for you, a great player on a bad team, frustrated that things weren't changing. I was old enough at this point to understand the intricacies of the league and it hurt me to see you play night in and night out, playing your hardest to get your team back to the level that you(and I) had grown accustomed to seeing you at. You wanted what you deserved, a chance at being a winner again.
When the rumors of you coming to the Bulls started to come out, I was ecstatic. KOBE!? ON MY TEAM!? What more could I ask for!? We all know how everything worked out but it was still a cool moment I thought was worth mentioning.
2008-2010
Your signature years. The years that you cemented yourself as one of the greatest players of all-time. (You were already my favorite player of all time) 2008 was your rise back to the top, thanks to the Lakers front-office, you finally had a team you could compete with again and were ready to win again, the Black Mamba had been let loose, you won your first and only MVP(you should have at least 4). You battled and fought hard to get back to the Finals that year, suffering a crushing loss to the Celtics in 6. As a fan this hurt seeing you try so hard but come up short again. But the next season, that season was the season you proved to everyone that your story was not a story that was handed to you, but one you earned, the Kobe Doin' Work season.
A man on a mission, everybody knew you were not going to take this season lightly, you were laser focused with one goal, a ring. As a fan, this was one of the craziest years since it was the beginning of the whole Kobe Vs LeBron debate and who was the best player. Non-stop debates and countless arguments, I was always on your side ready to tear apart anyone's case. That year you proved me right; making light work of Deron Williams and the Jazz, defeating Tracy and Yao narrowly extinguishing the Rockets, teaching young Melo that you were the real master and getting revenge for the Finals defeat against Chauncey and the Nuggets, all leading up the Finals against the Magic. In one of the more lopsided matchup in the Finals in history, you destroyed the Magic and finally became a NBA champion once more. This was one of the best times to be a Kobe Bryant fan, Lil Wayne songs, "Kobe doin' work 24 on my shirt, he the greatest on the court and i'm greatest on the verse" I played that song all summer. You were THE NBA that year and silenced many of your critics.
But you weren't done, oh no you wanted more, you did the same thing the next year, beating the Celtics and getting your 5th ring and again it was like being on cloud 9 as a fan. Debates started up again, but not the usual Kobe Vs LeBron debates, now it was Kobe Vs Jordan, could Kobe pass up the GOAT as the best player to have ever played the game?
2010-2012
And you tried, you really tried but the league had began to change and you fought hard to try get that 6th ring but unfortunately you weren't able to do it. These years I rode with you still supporting and hoping you would find a way to return to the top. These years came and went and you had to stand by and watch and new players took your spot as the best. Everything became about LeBron and the Heat, KD and the Thunder and the media swept you under the rug like you weren't still one of the best players in the league. But hey, networks have agendas and they have to push whats news and looks out for the them. (The Decision was on ESPN for a reason)
Anyways, these years were filled with a bunch of hypotheticals as a fan and who knows you could have passed Jordan had it not been for the league's blocking of the Chris Paul trade but that is something we will never know.
The Injury
This year was a hard year as a fan, you were still fighting hard to get your team back to the Finals, but the team just wasn't there, chemistry was bad and you earned the rep of being a bad teammate. I didn't see this way, I saw it as Kobe demanding the best from his teammates, the same way you demanded the best of yourself. You fought hard to even get the playoffs, maybe too hard, and tore your Achilles tendon. One of the saddest moments of my adult life as a sports fan, was hearing this news after knowing how hard you were playing to even get your team into the position you were in. This was were you cemented yourself as my favorite player of all-time. This injury was devastating, career ending, but you didn't quit, in true Mamba fashion, you went to the line and shot 2 free throws and walked off. Greatness.
2013-Present
Your tried to come back but by now your body had taken too much of a load. You gave 18 years of your life to this game and proved that you were one of the best to ever do it. But that wasn't enough, you fought and fought because you wanted to prove that you could still do it. You showed glimpse but the old saying stays true, father time is undefeated.
Your Last Game
I write this only hours before the final time you will ever take the court again. As a fan and a grown man I find myself reflecting on everything that you have shown and taught me over the last 16 years I have been watching you play. I didn't write one of these when Jeter retired, I didn't write one of these when Peyton retired, but I had to express my feelings when you are retiring because you have inspired me even in my adult years to always try my hardest, remain dedicated, and even when things seem at their worst, if you stay focused and determined you can return to greatness.
Now many people might be reading this and thinking, dude it's just a game and it's just a player and in a way they are right, but what those people don't realize is I grew up with Kobe, I've seen Kobe at his best and at his worst. Kobe is my Michael Jordan. He's been there for my entire time watching the NBA and once he is gone, things will continue to go on and i'll continue to watch because I love the sport, but it will never be the same as the days I would watch VHS tapes of recorded games or when I would ask who is #8?
So #ThankYouKobe for all that you have done for not only the game of basketball but for my life, you will forever be my favorite player and on April, 13, 2016, the game will have said goodbye to one of the best ever to ever play the game and one of the best who ever will play the game.
Very long but TLDR; he's the first player I really grew up watching and is one of the main reasons I fell in love with the game.
