Kobe came into the league in 1996, the end of my junior year in high school. But me and my boys had heard about Kobe over a year earlier. Back then, you could get Street and Smith's College Basketball Magazine, and they used to have a section dedicated to the top High School players in the country. It's where I learned about players before I ever saw them. I remember reading about Chauncey Billups, Vonteego Cummings, Samaki Walker, and many of the other players who made it to the league. Some never made it. Some became Kobe.

The blurb from street and smiths itself was short maybe 200 words max. Somehow, me and my boys in high school would still debate the players based on that 200 word description and MAYBE one highlight we had seen. One memory that resonates was in those early debates, Joe and Dustin thought his name was pronounced Kob (like the biblical character Job).

I grew up in Cerritos a suburb of LA in 79. And through the 80's the Lakers were the team. I think in the 80's they were only not the #1 seed in the west one year ('81) and won the championship 5 times. So when Kobe came onto the scene, we had "suffered" through some fun but "average teams" for most cities. (two 8th seeds, a 5th seed, and a 4th seed and a 1st round exit the year prior).

But 96-97, that was senior year -- and Kobe and Shaq joined the Lakers the summer before it started.

Kobe caught our attention with this play:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ef2eQxbIuOg

And we all became fans. There was something about the way Kobe carried himself -- that brash confidence, and lack of fear of anyone of failure -- that perfectly captures that time period for us. Teens becoming young men in the world.

Over the next two decades, I followed Kobe and he was always one of my favorite players. I moved to Atlanta and then to New York. Kobe has a lot of fans around the country and world, but he also had as many detractors. You'd have to do a lot more Kobe defending when outside the Greater LA area. Don't even get me started on the Kobe debates across internet message boards. Kobe debates probably fueled the rise bunch of sports message boards, and might be one of the most polarizing basketball players in internet message board history. Its been great seeing both sides of the Kobe debate come together to honor what he meant to the game.

This one hits hard. i was hoping for a Hall of Fame speech. I was enjoying watching him be a dad to his girls. This quote from "all the smoke" brings it home

“We just had so much fun because it was the first time I was seeing the game through her eyes,” Bryant said. “It wasn’t me sitting there as an athlete or a player or something like that. … It was her — she was having such a good time.”


You all know how much I love basketball. Over the last couple years, Ive watched less, and started following jiujitsu more. I tried to start my son in basketball at 5, but he preferred soccer. He always knew about players I watched and followed, but wasn't that into basketball.

Last year, right before the summer started he told me he wanted to play basketball and give up soccer. Its been a few months, and he still isn't that good-- but steady improving-its fun seeing his joy in something I loved so much. Reading recaps, watching highlights, playing on the mini-hoop on his door (LOUDLY) long periods.

Taking him to his games, and shooting around on the court myself-- I feel so at home on a basketball court. Its a language I speak and will never forget.

What's been especially great though, is he is building hopefully lifelong friendships and learning to carry a conversation and debate through basketball. I've been teasing him about Kyrie. I heard him use my argument the other day with some friends. :)

Those same debates we used to have near our spot on the concrete by the payphones at St John Bosco High School from 1995 -1997. That's where we first heard about Kob (rhymes with Job).

To basketball. life. friendships.

RIP Kobe