Thank You, Kobe

Thank you, Kobe, for all that you’ve done for my generation. Thank you for being someone millions of people looked up to, for inspiring us to be the best versions of ourselves. Thank you for your countless efforts to grow the game of basketball, being an advocate for the WNBA, and raising a daughter who wanted to be just like you. Thank you for inspiring the next era of the NBA, the Trae Young’s and Luke Doncic’s of basketball. Thank you for showing there’s more to life than just sports, and always stressing family first. Thank you for being an icon.

There are certain events that make you remember where you were when they happened, this is one of those times. I was in a car, meticulously looking through Twitter, praying the initial TMZ report was not true. I then saw Adrian Wojnorowski of ESPN confirm the report that Kobe Bryant, his 13 year old daughter Gianna along with seven others tragically passed in a helicopter crash. The world around me froze, he wasn’t just another NBA player. The name Kobe is universally known, no matter where you’re from or what language you speak, you knew Kobe. The name represents more than a player, it’s a way of life, a reminder to always keep improving and that the best is never enough. 

I didn’t start to get into basketball until around 2010. I remember the day after the Lakers won the Lakers defeated the Celtics in the 2010 NBA Finals, my teacher came into class wearing a Kobe jersey, on the white board all that was written was “Kobe x5”. The next season, I started to watch more of the NBA, becoming a fan of the New Jersey Nets (mainly because they played on the same network as the Yankees), my primary memory from that season is Kobe dropping 32 points on Anthony Morrow. No matter what team you’re a fan of, Kobe destroyed your team, that’s who he was. 

Perhaps more than anything else, Kobe Bryant was a man anyone could look up to. An Oscar winner, an AAU coach for Gianna’s team, a father of four, a devoted citizen who didn’t put himself first, a genuine human being. Listening to people who’ve met Kobe and partaken in any sort of exchange with him swear by how personable he was. I never had the honor of meeting Kobe, but through following the past decade of the NBA world, I understood who he was, what he meant to everyone around him, and how many people he impacted. The following hours and days after the tragedy, millions of fans shared memories and thoughts of Kobe on social media, including former teammates, actors, musicians and presidents. Reading through the posts, you truly get a grasp of how much he meant to everyone he interacted with. 

My heart goes out to Vanessa Bryant, her daughters Natalia, Bianka and Capri, and the families of John, Keri and Alyssa Altobelli, Christina Mauser, Sarah and Payton Chester, and Ara Zobayan. The world lost a one of a kind man on Sunday, January 26th, an irreplaceable figure in the lives of so many. As a tear runs through my eyes, I’ll say one more time:

Thank you Kobe, for the memories, for inspiring me and millions of others, for the records and championships, for being personable, for being a father. Thank you Kobe, for being an icon.

Rest in peace, Kobe Bryant, 1978-2020

Will Jackson