Kobe Bryant: He Did It His Way

Did they know what you meant to the game of basketball or what it meant to you? Did they fully understand your greatness? How can they love Michael Jordan but hate you at the same time? How can they compare LeBron James to you when he has not achieved what you have? How dare they disrespect your name and legacy?

This may be the hardest article I’ve ever written just because it’s supposed to be similar to a eulogy. But no, I’m not going to do that. Once I go that route, then that means I’ve accepted that everything you have done will be forgotten. I refuse to do that not only to myself but the fans and your family. The Black Mamba will forever live on through my words and countless others you have touched through a sport we love.

Let’s take a trip….

The feeling is like a break-up you saw coming but never wanted to happen. You still have feelings for that person but you know it’s best if you let them go. The Mamba is gone, gone for good, now we must find another. Another player to root for, to hate or to love. But is anyone in the NBA worthy of that type of attention?

Maybe, maybe not. So, the only thing left to do is reminisce, think about the good and bad times and try to figure out our next move.

To see you walk away from the game was painful but it was for the best. Not just for the fans, but for the league and the Los Angeles Lakers. They needed you gone so they could grow. But I had no idea it would be this hard.

We miss No. 8 shooting airballs in playoff games. We miss the youthful dunks, the crossovers, and the Jordan-like facial expressions. We’ll miss you looking up to Shaquille O’Neal and Michael Jordan. However, as the years went on, you changed. Now, we’ll miss those clutch shots, the unguardable fadeaways, the Mamba expressions and how you wanted to be better than Shaq and Mike. Those are the traits lacking in today’s game. Everyone wants to be friends and teammates and all Kobe Byrant wanted to do was destroy everyone on the court. Sometimes even your own players according to UPROXX.com.

Bryant told us when he entered the league, “I will win the Dunk Contest”, and as a rookie, he did that. He wanted championships, did that, five times in seven trips. He wanted to be an All-Star, mission accomplished, 18 times. Wilt Chamberlain had the record for most points scored in a game and he wanted to top that. He came close with 81 points against the Toronto Raptors.

The Greatest Los Angeles Laker Ever

They said the Lakers were Shaq’s team and without him, it was too much for Bryant to carry. Well, in Game 4 of the 2000 NBA Finals against the Indiana Pacers, he silenced the world as he took over in overtime while Shaq watched from the bench. At that point everyone started to believe, they knew we just witnessed the heir apparent.

Kobe Bryant is finally ready to say goodbye https://t.co/YIEk8RbrSX #Lakers pic.twitter.com/uvtvpdcKSG

— ESPNLosAngeles (@ESPNLosAngeles) December 17, 2017

But there was that one hurdle to clear before his legacy could be cemented. No matter how many points or titles Bryant won, he was still a Laker and no championship could ever amount to you beating the Boston Celtics for one. His last three seasons were painful to watch as I couldn’t help but picture you going out like Jordan. Just being greedy and taking the spotlight from younger teammates. But he set that record straight from the beginning when it was announced that 2015 would be his last season.

I know he didn’t expect the love that was shown his way but he still took heat for it. No one knew who to blame for that. They didn’t know whether to blame Kobe, the media, the Lakers or what? However, every city he played in, in 2015 gave him the utmost respect. This was not supposed to happen for Kobe Bryant. This was reserved for Jordan, but not him. Everyone hated Kobe Bryant, right?

Hear what some of the current #Lakers players had to say about @kobebryant ahead of Monday’s jersey retirement. pic.twitter.com/MXEKIItZF7

— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) December 17, 2017

Goodbye Kobe Bryant

Then today, I sign on to Facebook and see the news of his passing. I was in disbelief, then that turned to shock as it was confirmed that Bryant, his precious daughter, and three others were killed in a helicopter crash. How could this be?

Kobe Bryant is gone. Not retirement gone but physically no longer with us. As I sat for a moment and let that sink in, my first thought as a writer was how can I honor someone I grew up watching and rooted for get my point across without pouring my emotions all over the computer screen? But this is one of those cases where I need everyone to feel my pain. I need them to know that I am and always will be a Kobe Bryant fan.

#MAMBA

Mark Wilson

Mark has been covering Sports and Entertainment for the past six years. His work has been featured on Bleacher Report, ESPN, Fox Sports, Teen Vogue, and many other websites.