Kobe Reflections: His Last Game (April 13, 2016)
Originally posted on Facebook: April 14, 2016
Post Warning: If you’re not part of Laker Nation and a Kobe fan keep scrolling…this is a long one…any negative comments will be deleted.
KOBE REFLECTIONS
I woke up this morning still in a state of disbelief that yesterday was Kobe’s last time wearing the purple and gold. I didn’t sleep well. I tried to wrap my head around it. I cried when I watched Hannah Storm’s Kobe lead-in on SportsCenter this morning.
Since his retirement announcement, I haven’t watched all the games or the arena tributes (even if I wanted to I couldn’t based on what I’m managing right now in my life- whole another story, but those who know, know).
Subconsciously, it was probably best. I would have been a mess. Yes, I’m a die-hard Kobe fan and have been a Laker fan since I was a kid growing up in L.A. And you know what, I’m DAMN proud of it!
But the magnitude of it all didn’t hit me till yesterday. I’m one of those people that sway on the side of delayed reaction. I have to sit with things. Plus I wanted to remember Kobe how most of us want to remember him: dunking, nailing game winning jumpers, Mamba face, chewing on his jersey, the post up, fade away jump shot, taking over games in the 3rd and 4th quarters, the fundamentals, the footwork, the chants of MVP, and the 5-championships.
I’m still processing.
I watched the game at home wearing my Kobe jersey (yes, I wore my jersey like kids wear their superhero outfits when they watch their favorite superhero movie- I have no shame in it either).
I can’t believe I witnessed what I witnessed.
It’s not just the fact that it was his last game, but the energy surrounding it. The game-day and in-game tributes, the feeling in the city, the longevity of 20 years with one team, and the GREATNESS of that performance at this stage in his career. One last time. It was storybook, it was mind blowing, I don’t need to keep describing it, YOU saw it.
Put it into context for a sec, he ranks 6th in most minutes played in an NBA career, 3rd in most career NBA playoff minutes, and 5th in most career NBA playoff appearances. That’s not even counting USA Basketball and the Olympics. Kobe’s got more miles on his body than a rusty, beat-up Chevy that has long seen its glory. He might be thirty-six in age, but he has the body, the aches and pains that your grandparents and great-grandparents talk about. Yet he served up 60.
Unless you have played competitive sports (or been a dancer) for a lengthy stretch of time, I don’t think you can understand the toll it takes on your body. I stopped playing during my college years, but my knees get stiff, ache and pop.
Some of my friends, family, and others wonder why I ride so hard for Kobe. I have engaged in my fair share of verbal warfare because I choose to call him “The Truth and The Light”. I’ve been told that it was sacrilegious. And my response has always been, but he’s the truth and the light on the basketball court.
I (like everyone else) have watched him face challenges on the hardwood, and attack them like he wasn’t mortal. He channelled something deep inside and WILLED himself and his teammates to victory. His mental focus, toughness, stamina, determination, and passion is like nothing I’ve ever never seen before in the Association.
I’ll never forget a road game against the Kings in the early 2000’s, the Lakers were getting their ass kicked. I saw and recognized the moment he was have an inner dialogue with himself and flipped the switch and decided the Lakers were going to win (Stu Lantz recognized it too and mentioned it on-air) and they did. My cousin would say that he has and knows how to access his "Star Power," that power that lives within each and every one of us.
He lived his passion. We should all be so lucky while on our journey to find that. He gave his heart and soul for what he loved. If you can’t understand or respect that, you’ll never get it. I can't explain it to you.
My other cousin (yes, I have a lot of cousins) sent me a text during the game that summarizes it best, “THIS is why we cry! We will never experience this type of passion and talent…he proved why he’s the greatest! THE MAMBA IS OUT!
