'Mamba Week' and the legacy of Kobe Bryant

MIES (Switzerland) - Kobe Bryant. Fierce competitor. Inspiration. Genius. Champion. USA national team star. Greatest Laker of all time. Mentor and father. FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 ambassador.

Kobe would have turned 42 on August 23, but he and his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, were among nine people that died in a helicopter crash on January 26 earlier this year.

In remembrance of Kobe's legacy, the week starting August 23 has been dubbed Mamba Week.

Kobe was much loved. He was adored, respected, admired.The tragedy is still felt deeply, everywhere.

Born in the basketball hotbed of Philadelphia on this day in 1978 to parents Joe Bryant and Pamela Cox Bryant, Kobe was destined for greatness. At the age of six, he moved to Italy where his father, who had competed in the NBA, continued his professional career. They remained there for seven years as Kobe experienced a different culture, became fluent in Italian and fell in love with basketball. He returned to America and blossomed into an incredible hoops talent at Lower Merion High School in a suburb of Philadelphia.

A few months shy of his 18th birthday, Kobe, became a first-round draft pick. He took the NBA by storm while playing for the Los Angeles Lakers.

By 1998, when he made the first of 18 All-Star Game appearances, Kobe was already one of the most celebrated players in the league. By 2000, he was an NBA champion. Kobe would go on to win five NBA crowns and twice be named as the Finals MVP. Kobe, who dubbed himself “Black Mamba”, constantly amazed.

His 81 points in 2006 game against Toronto at the Staples Center captured the imagination of fans. That tally was the second most points ever scored in an NBA game.

Kobe had confidence in abundance. He was always courageous. Even after suffering a torn Achilles late in a regular season game against the Golden State Warriors in 2013, Kobe stayed in the game to make vital free-throws that helped the Lakers win, 118-116, to clinch a play-off berth.

You can go on and on about the buzzer-beaters, the flair, the fortitude of Kobe. In every game he played, he gave fans, whether they were Lakers supporters or detractors, something to talk about.

He shone bright in international basketball, too, winning a FIBA AmeriCup crown in 2007 and Olympic gold medals in 2008 and 2012. His clutch four-point play for the USA in the Beijing Olympics Gold Medal Game is the stuff of legend. It came late in the contest against Spain that the USA won,118-107.

When he was with the USA at those Olympics, Kobe was the most popular athlete at the Games. If he walked into an arena to watch a game or another Olympic discipline, there was always a commotion. The camera always picked him out and on the big screen at venues, fans erupted in applause when they saw him. He always smiled and waved.

Even after he retired, Kobe was a star. He mentored sportsmen and sportswomen, and not just basketball players. Tennis great Novak Djokovic called Kobe his mentor. His daughter, Gianna, was turning out to be quite a player herself, and Kobe coached her. He wanted to help women reach new heights in the sport.

It was an enormous privilege for FIBA to have Kobe serve as a FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 Ambassador.

"For me, it's been a huge honor to be a part of it," he said near the end of the tournament. "Learning the game in Italy, I grew up with the international stage. My first lessons how to play the game were taught to me by Italian coaches and basketball back then wasn't as global as it is now.

"For it to come full circle, for me to be an ambassador of the game, to try to help spread the beauty of the game, particularly FIBA, is extremely important. It's important for fans all over the world to see how beautiful this game is. And if I can help in any small way, I'm definitely going to do it." 

Kobe had a way when connecting with people. He was generous with advice and always spoke honestly. Maybe that's why he was able to taste success in the area of filmmaking. In 2018, he won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for his 2017 film Dear Basketball.

So many players in the game today fell in love with basketball because of Kobe. Boys and girls, they wanted to be like their hero. Everyone knows his story, and if they don't, they'll hear it. Kobe was a testament that hard work pays off, and he always wanted to be better, even if he was already excellent. His impact will be everlasting.

Nike is using the week to draw attention to the Mamba League it created in partnership with Bryant and local Boys & Girls Clubs, as well as announce a $1-million donation to the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation in memory of Kobe and Gianna.

FIBA