On January 26, 2020, the world lost one of the most iconic athletes of all time. From NBA players looking up to him to simply throwing away a piece of trash and yelling the infamous line, Kobe Bryant will forever be etched in the history of sports and will forever be missed by anyone who knew the name and the game. 

The 18-time All-Star was a staple in the game of basketball. What he did for the game was monumental and will forever be remembered. He modeled his game after his hero, Michael Jordan. And over the years, he was able to grow close ties with someone he used to call a mentor to more of a brother and a friend. The way he looked up to Jordan was the same way other athletes around the world looked up to him. Even Legends like Lebron James looked up to Kobe, as he had a way of bringing everyone’s attention towards him. 

At the beginning of his career, Kobe wore the number 8. During that time, he dominated the league with the help of his teammate Shaquille O’Neal. Together, the two obtained three championship rings and seemed ultimately unstoppable. After Shaq was traded to Miami and won another ring for himself, Kobe was driven to prove that he was capable of winning a ring without Shaq.

After he changed his jersey number to 24 towards the middle of his career, he had accomplished that goal and won two more championships with the help of Pau Gasol and multiple other key role players. That drive to prove he was the best was one of his most definable qualities. 

Constant hours of hard work and dedication is what Bryant was best known for. The mentality of never letting anyone else be better than you and working harder than anyone in the room is what drove Kobe to be as good as he was. This mentality was named “Mamba Mentality,” as Kobe was nicknamed the Black Mamba after his snake-like agility and aggressiveness, and has since been portrayed by anyone who has shown to have the same work ethic in mind. 

At the same time he was playing for the Lakers in 2006, he founded the Kobe and Vanessa Bryant foundation, which is meant to help and improve the lives of any family in need. He had four beautiful young daughters who he loved and wouldn’t want to see in trouble. He made it his goal to help out any family who needed an extra hand. 

Although Kobe’s life seemed like a dream, it wasn’t at all perfect. Late in 2003, he was accused of sexual assault by a 19-year-old hotel employee. Even though he admitted to having sexual relations with the young woman, he denied all accusations of the assault. The chargers were dropped after the accuser wouldn’t testify the case.

Kobe Bryant impacted millions upon millions of sports fans, including myself. The way he never let up and always worked as hard as possible is the standard I and many other athletes strive for. He has had more of an impact on me than any other basketball player – other than Lebron James. My friends and I have spent countless hours debating who’s the better basketball player and it always ends in one of us getting mad and walking away. The impact he had on all of us was more than we could have ever thought. All we thought about was comparing two greats who dominated the game respectively in their own way and it never crossed our minds that one of those legends wouldn’t be with us today. 

The world of sports has been shocked more than in recent memory. The echoes of Kobe’s reign in the NBA is all that we have left. Many teams around the NBA are discussing if they should retire the number 24 that Kobe dawned later in his career. The Dallas Mavericks have already taken that initiative and retired the number the day after his death was announced. 

Nothing will ever be the same as the loss of the legend. Although he hasn’t laced his shoes up in almost four years, since he passed, the game will forever feel different with the loss of one of the greatest to ever do it.

—–

If there are issues with this article, report it here.