Jesse Musinguzi, Grade 12
UWCEA Moshi
Today I got the chance to sit down with 5 time NBA champion Kobe Bryant to have a one-on-one conversation about 3 things that popped up in my mind. Kobe is someone I have always looked up to, not only on the basketball court but also in life in general. His Mamba mentality, work ethic, and attitude towards life were truly inspiring. Even through all the trials and tribulations during his career, with all the injuries and what not, he was still able to have a long, luscious career. He was drafted 13th overall by the Charlotte Hornets in the 1996 NBA draft and was later traded to the Lakers, for whom he played 20 seasons. He was also part of the 2008 and 2012 USA men’s basketball teams. A great character, I present to you, Kobe Bryant.
Me: Hello Kobe, it’s an absolute pleasure to meet you, sir. My name is Jesse, and I’m a huge fan.
Kobe: What’s up Jesse? The pleasure is mine.
Me: Awesome, it’s great to have you here. So, my first question is about your name. Your name is “Kobe “Bean” Bryant”. What was the inspiration behind your names?
Kobe: Well, it’s actually a pretty interesting story. The name “Bean” was actually my dad’s nickname, "Jellybean,” back when he played. He played 8 seasons in the league and 8 more in Italy, where I grew up. Fun Fact: I’m fluent in Italian. Kobe came about when my parents went to a restaurant and saw Japanese Kobe steak on the menu and were like, “Hey! Let’s go with that. "and changed the pronunciation from “ko-bay” to “ko-bee” .
Me: Oh my goodness, that’s crazy.
Kobe: Right, because steak and beans? Like, what are we doing with that, you know?
Me: It’s so crazy. So in 1996, at just 17 years of age, you were drafted 13th overall by the Charlotte Hornets but then traded to the Los Angeles Lakers on draft night. It was a big transition skipping college and heading straight to the league. What was your mindset going into a more physical and skillful game?
Kobe: Heading into the league, I went with the mindset that every time I stepped out onto the basketball court, I was going to put a strong effort out there on the floor. The reason I skipped college and went directly to the NBA is because I wanted that challenge. I was looking at my future and I didn’t want to have to ask myself whether I would have been able to handle the challenge, so I just accepted it.
Me: That’s truly inspirational, sir. Another burning question I had was about the nickname “The Black Mamba” and Mamba mentality. How did it come about?
Kobe: Black Mamba was born during the lowest part of my career when everything went from me being all good in my career to just plummeting. It was just happening so fast, and I decided to create the Black Mamba as my alter ego. He would handle all the business on the court and Kobe would handle the personal business. I got my inspiration from “Kill Bill” by Quentin Tarantino, where the assassin would kill using a black mamba snake. I looked up the snake and that was literally me. On the court, the Black Mamba feared no one. Nothing could get in my way and no one could stop me, I was going to destroy everyone that stepped out onto the court. I wanted to use all that pent up frustration on the court. This energy was not because of any player, it was just a battle within myself and whoever was on the court was simply in my way and would get destroyed in the process. My book, 'The Mamba Mentality: How I Play', gives an insight into what was going on in my head every time I played. The five pillars of the mamba mentality are resilience, fearlessness, obsessiveness, relentlessness, passion. They’re explained in more detail in my book but basically, one needs to have each of these pillars to truly have the mamba mentality.
Me: Oh yes, I read your book, a brilliant book too. Even with all the injuries for example back in 2013 when you ruptured your achilles against the Golden State Warriors and still shot your freethrows. Truly inspiring. Well, that’s the end of our chat. Thank you so much for taking time out of your day to come talk to me and thank you for the signed jersey too!
Kobe: It was fun being here, hank you for having me man.
Works Cited
Clarkson, Kelly. “Kobe Bryant Says Middle Name “Bean” Came from “My Parents Smoking Something That Was Illegal.”” Www.youtube.com, 15 Nov. 2019, www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4P3LgpjdHQ&ab_channel=TheKellyClarksonShow. Accessed 4 Aug. 2022.
Gaines, Cork. “Kobe Bryant Created His “Black Mamba” Alter-Ego as a Way to Get through the Lowest Point of His Career.” Insider, 12 June 2022, www.insider.com/kobe-bryant-black-mamba-nickname-2022-6. Accessed 4 Aug. 2022.
Highlights, Hooper. “NBA Draft 1996 - Kobe Bryant (Pick No. 13).” Www.youtube.com, 26 June 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7ZgXeCGjJQ&ab_channel=HooperHighlights. Accessed 4 Aug. 2022.
“Kobe Bryant.” Team USA, 2012, www.teamusa.org/usa-basketball/athletes/Kobe-Bryant.
“Kobe Bryant.” Www.usab.com, www.usab.com/basketball/players/mens/b/bryant-kobe. Accessed 3 Aug. 2022.
Stewart, Chelsea, et al. “The Interesting Story behind Kobe Bryant’s Name.” Showbiz Cheat Sheet, 6 Feb. 2020, www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/the-interesting-story-behind-kobe-bryants-name.html/.
The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. “Kobe Bryant | Biography, Stats, & Facts.” Encyclopædia Britannica, 12 Dec. 2018, www.britannica.com/biography/Kobe-Bryant.
“The Five Pillars of Kobe Bryant’s “Mamba Mentality.”” ATHLETE IQ, 9 Feb. 2020, athleteiq.com.au/the-five-pillars-of-kobe-bryants-mamba-mentality/.
World, Republic. “Kobe Bryant Once Tried to Pull His Tendon up Following an Achilles Injury.” Republic World, www.republicworld.com/sports-news/basketball-news/bryant-once-tried-to-pull-his-tendon-up-following-his-achilles-injury.html. Accessed 4 Aug. 2022.
Image Courtesy: https://www.oregonlive.com/business/2021/04/explaining-the-end-of-nikes-deal-with-kobe-bryants-estate.html
Me: Hello Kobe, it’s an absolute pleasure to meet you, sir. My name is Jesse, and I’m a huge fan.
Kobe: What’s up Jesse? The pleasure is mine.
Me: Awesome, it’s great to have you here. So, my first question is about your name. Your name is “Kobe “Bean” Bryant”. What was the inspiration behind your names?
Kobe: Well, it’s actually a pretty interesting story. The name “Bean” was actually my dad’s nickname, "Jellybean,” back when he played. He played 8 seasons in the league and 8 more in Italy, where I grew up. Fun Fact: I’m fluent in Italian. Kobe came about when my parents went to a restaurant and saw Japanese Kobe steak on the menu and were like, “Hey! Let’s go with that. "and changed the pronunciation from “ko-bay” to “ko-bee” .
Me: Oh my goodness, that’s crazy.
Kobe: Right, because steak and beans? Like, what are we doing with that, you know?
Me: It’s so crazy. So in 1996, at just 17 years of age, you were drafted 13th overall by the Charlotte Hornets but then traded to the Los Angeles Lakers on draft night. It was a big transition skipping college and heading straight to the league. What was your mindset going into a more physical and skillful game?
Kobe: Heading into the league, I went with the mindset that every time I stepped out onto the basketball court, I was going to put a strong effort out there on the floor. The reason I skipped college and went directly to the NBA is because I wanted that challenge. I was looking at my future and I didn’t want to have to ask myself whether I would have been able to handle the challenge, so I just accepted it.
Me: That’s truly inspirational, sir. Another burning question I had was about the nickname “The Black Mamba” and Mamba mentality. How did it come about?
Kobe: Black Mamba was born during the lowest part of my career when everything went from me being all good in my career to just plummeting. It was just happening so fast, and I decided to create the Black Mamba as my alter ego. He would handle all the business on the court and Kobe would handle the personal business. I got my inspiration from “Kill Bill” by Quentin Tarantino, where the assassin would kill using a black mamba snake. I looked up the snake and that was literally me. On the court, the Black Mamba feared no one. Nothing could get in my way and no one could stop me, I was going to destroy everyone that stepped out onto the court. I wanted to use all that pent up frustration on the court. This energy was not because of any player, it was just a battle within myself and whoever was on the court was simply in my way and would get destroyed in the process. My book, 'The Mamba Mentality: How I Play', gives an insight into what was going on in my head every time I played. The five pillars of the mamba mentality are resilience, fearlessness, obsessiveness, relentlessness, passion. They’re explained in more detail in my book but basically, one needs to have each of these pillars to truly have the mamba mentality.
Me: Oh yes, I read your book, a brilliant book too. Even with all the injuries for example back in 2013 when you ruptured your achilles against the Golden State Warriors and still shot your freethrows. Truly inspiring. Well, that’s the end of our chat. Thank you so much for taking time out of your day to come talk to me and thank you for the signed jersey too!
Kobe: It was fun being here, hank you for having me man.
Works Cited
Clarkson, Kelly. “Kobe Bryant Says Middle Name “Bean” Came from “My Parents Smoking Something That Was Illegal.”” Www.youtube.com, 15 Nov. 2019, www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4P3LgpjdHQ&ab_channel=TheKellyClarksonShow. Accessed 4 Aug. 2022.
Gaines, Cork. “Kobe Bryant Created His “Black Mamba” Alter-Ego as a Way to Get through the Lowest Point of His Career.” Insider, 12 June 2022, www.insider.com/kobe-bryant-black-mamba-nickname-2022-6. Accessed 4 Aug. 2022.
Highlights, Hooper. “NBA Draft 1996 - Kobe Bryant (Pick No. 13).” Www.youtube.com, 26 June 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7ZgXeCGjJQ&ab_channel=HooperHighlights. Accessed 4 Aug. 2022.
“Kobe Bryant.” Team USA, 2012, www.teamusa.org/usa-basketball/athletes/Kobe-Bryant.
“Kobe Bryant.” Www.usab.com, www.usab.com/basketball/players/mens/b/bryant-kobe. Accessed 3 Aug. 2022.
Stewart, Chelsea, et al. “The Interesting Story behind Kobe Bryant’s Name.” Showbiz Cheat Sheet, 6 Feb. 2020, www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/the-interesting-story-behind-kobe-bryants-name.html/.
The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. “Kobe Bryant | Biography, Stats, & Facts.” Encyclopædia Britannica, 12 Dec. 2018, www.britannica.com/biography/Kobe-Bryant.
“The Five Pillars of Kobe Bryant’s “Mamba Mentality.”” ATHLETE IQ, 9 Feb. 2020, athleteiq.com.au/the-five-pillars-of-kobe-bryants-mamba-mentality/.
World, Republic. “Kobe Bryant Once Tried to Pull His Tendon up Following an Achilles Injury.” Republic World, www.republicworld.com/sports-news/basketball-news/bryant-once-tried-to-pull-his-tendon-up-following-his-achilles-injury.html. Accessed 4 Aug. 2022.
Image Courtesy: https://www.oregonlive.com/business/2021/04/explaining-the-end-of-nikes-deal-with-kobe-bryants-estate.html
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