I feel like it might be a good idea to take a look back at how and why I became a fan of Kobe Bryant. I really began paying attention to the NBA in the 90s. Living in Minnesota, we didn't have a team until 1989 and it was many years before Kevin Garnett showed up and made them relevant. I admit that I did what the rest of the country did, and hopped on the Bulls bandwagon. I was born in 1984 so I'm saying I was a child when I started liking MJ and the Bulls, I didn't even know what the term bandwagon meant. Watching Jordan play was a blast and I was at the time as much of a Jordan fan as I am a Kobe fan today. But I knew that Jordan's career was coming to a close and I wanted to find the next Jordan as many others did. I knew of Kobe, but I started really paying attention when he won the dunk contest in his rookie year. He had many similarities to MJ and overall he was just an exciting young player. I can in fact remember telling a friend that I was looking forward to Jordan's retirement so that I could see Kobe and Shaq win some rings. I've always view Kobe a little bit differently than I view a lot of NBA stars. He's well spoken, he speaks Italian, and actually did well enough on his SAT to actually get into college (unlike KG). So many NBA frustrate the hell out of me because they can barely even speak ENGLISH as their first language. I've always just thought he was more intelligent and well rounded person than most of the stars in the league. Now, on to the more present day. It's no secret that Kobe's drive is second to none. He is on a mission to be the greatest nba player of all time. Whether he's already there, or he's on his way, or if he has no shot whatsoever, none of those statements will effect the effort that he will continue to put in on his quest. He famously only takes a couple weeks off after the season before he starts his training again which usually has him up working before 5 o'clock in the morning. In contrast you have guys like Shaq that make shitty movies, video games, rap albums, and visit Disney World during there down time. Love him or Hate him, Kobe works hard! I don't see how people can hate the fact that someone wants to be the best at what they do? Kobe has 5 rings, been to the finals 7 times, but I have no doubt in my mind that he wants to win more championships more than any other player in the league. There's been times when Kobe's tried to take the game into his hands and failed, I'll admit that, but you're never gonna see him shy away from the moment like Lebron did against Dallas. Kobe won't go down without a fight period! That pretty much sums it up for now, I'm sure I'll probably come back to this later and add more.
No comments:
Post a Comment