On Sunday, November 29, NBA legend Kobe Bryant announced that he will retire from the game of basketball at the conclusion to this season.
This season marks Bryant’s 20th in the league, all with the Los Angeles Lakers--a record for the longest tenure with one team. In what will be Bryant’s last season he is averaging 15.8 points per game and is shooting a career-worst: 30 percent from the field.
I personally have never been a fan of Kobe Bryant the person. I have all the respect for Kobe Bryant the basketball player, but don’t feel that towards him as a person. This stems from the rape accusations filed against Bryant in 2003 that were dropped a year later. Following these accusations, Bryant decided to change his jersey number from 8 to 24, a move I felt done to help repair his image. A different number on his back signified that he was a completely different person.
As a life-long Knicks fan, I always hated seeing Bryant walk into Madison Square Garden. Fans knew Bryant was going to put up big numbers in The Garden and there was little that could be done to stop him. Kobe was going to get his, whether the defense or fans liked it or not. On February 2, 2009, Bryant scored a then Madison Square Garden record for points in a game with 61.
Bryant always faced the same criticisms from fans: he doesn’t pass enough, he takes too many shots, and he doesn’t take enough high percentage shots. He’ll never be Michael Jordan, no matter how hard he tries.
But in the days since Bryant announced his retirement my thoughts on him have been changing.
Now I think of Bryant as one of the greatest to ever step onto a basketball court. Personal bias says that he isn’t better than Jordan, but Bryant’s in the conversation. Thinking of Bryant now, I see the man that gave his all to the game he loved until he physically couldn’t do it anymore. Bryant deserves all the respect in the world from fans.
Bryant is the 5-time champion, the 17-time all-star, 15-time all NBA selection and 12-time all defensive team player. He somehow only won one league MVP award, and is third all-time in career points. There’s a reason why people yell “KOBE!” when throwing a piece of paper in the trash.
After reading Bryant’s poem to his life titled “Dear Basketball”, something changed. A new respect was felt for this man. I felt saddened that one of the greatest to ever play was leaving the game. Seeing the shell of the player he once was is now heartbreaking, no longer pathetic. I now wish good fortunes onto Kobe Bryant; I look forward to seeing him in the all-star game one last time, getting the goodbye he truly deserves. And when I go to throw out my next piece of trash, I too will be shouting “KOBE!”
