Commemorating Lakers Legend Kobe Bryant's Birthday

Kobe Bryant would have turned 43 today.

“You can’t be held captive by the fear of failure or the fear of what people may say.”

One of Kobe’s all-time quotes, as this was his modus operandi throughout his career. This quote carried through to his brash and sometimes destructive mentality, where he didn’t let anything come in the way of him and success.

Kobe Bryant would have been 43 today had that unfortunate helicopter crash not occurred that fateful gloomy January morning. After his playing career, it was evident Bryant saw the positive impact he had on society, thus he went out of his way to mentor younger players, and was also a huge advocate of women’s basketball.

Since Summer League just passed last week, here is some Kobe footage of his time in the Summer League dominating for the Lakers.

LMAO bro I see some 18 year old kid do this now and I’d be like he’s gonna be in this league for a loooooong time.. holy shit was Kobe ahead of the curve even vs NBA guys https://t.co/cqHWG89DPn

— 🦉 Lakers Vino (@VinoUncorked) August 9, 2021

Even at the age of 18, Kobe was clearly ahead of his time, and any casual that watches that footage can tell that he was a man playing amongst boys.

As Bryant was in the latter stages of his career, he started to soften up and mentor many of the young superstars that we have in the league today. The impact the Black Mamba has on players today and in the future is much more than his idols of Michael Jordan, and Jerry West does with the youth now.

Kobe Bryant’s Impact on Active Players

One of the best advices LeBron James ever got was back in 2001 when he was still in high school attending a basketball camp, and Bryant was a speaker there.

In Matt Sullivan’s book Can’t Knock the Hustle, James remembers fondly of one piece of advice then 22-year-old Bryant said.

“Don’t rely on basketball for your happiness because it’s not gonna happen. Make sure you balance your life out, you have something there for yourself in life, so when the game is over, you know exactly what you want to do.”

Back in 2009 during the Western Conference Finals, Carmelo Anthony remembers how Bryant knew how to compartmentalize being competitive with friends and foes alike.

Via the All the Smoke podcast:

“That was my moment where me and Kob became – before that we went to the Olympics. We became very close. But we became close on some disrespectful s—. You know Kob, he going into your neck. He elbowing you. I had my braids back then, too, so he touching my head. I’m like, ‘Don’t touch my head. Don’t touch me no more, dawg.’ He’s smirking. He’s throwing his little s— elbows, and ’09 came, and it was like, I remember we hugged before the game, and he was like, ‘It’s war.’ I said, ‘It’s war. Let’s get it. It ain’t gonna be nothing easy.’ And I just remember him telling me, ‘I’ll guard you in the fourth. They ain’t gonna make no calls on me. They ain’t gonna call no s— on me in the fourth.’ And I used to try to beat him up though. I was bigger than him, so I used to try to beat him up, be physical with him. He come back, elbow me. I come back, elbow him. He laughing, talking, ‘That’s all you got?’”

During Russell Westbrook’s recent introductory press conference as a Laker, he recalls of the discussions he and Bryant had.

“It hasn’t left my head. There’s things we have talked about – me and him and just the potential in me being able to be a Laker and understanding what that entails. It’s just crazy to think about. That will be with me every time I put that Lakers jersey on.”

Attributes like his loyalty still exist in today’s NBA. Lakers owner Jeanie Buss recently said she does not see another player ever matching Kobe's loyalty to one franchise.

Even with all the trade rumors concerning Damian Lillard, he has publicly stated his desire to remain loyal to the city of Portland and spend his whole career there. In the last song of his new album, Different On Levels the Lord Allowed, Lillard cites Bryant’s loyalty to stay with his franchise as something he hopes to do himself.

“Growing up in Oakland, Kobe was like a superhero since our team never made the playoffs we shifted our focus to being Lakers fans, and Kobe coming out of high school, being young, becoming a superstar for one franchise, you know, I really admired that, which is why I’m taking the route I’m taking with the Blazers.”

Even after a year and half, the fact Kobe Bryant is no longer with us still seems unfathomable. Kobe was only here for 41 years and yet, the impact he has in the league and society as a whole just tells everyone how much he managed to achieve in his brief time on this planet.