Sunday marks the fifth anniversary of the tragic helicopter crash that claimed the lives of Kobe Bryant and eight other people, including his daughter.
The Los Angeles Lakers organization and the basketball world have continued to honor Bryant’s legacy — for what he did for the game and the city of Los Angeles.
“I respected him as a person and he was an amazing basketball player,” Lakers rookie Bronny James said. “It’s going to be a special day for everyone in the Lakers community and all around the world.”
The murals around the city, the Nos. 8 and 24 jerseys hanging up in the rafters, the two statues sitting out front of Crypto.com Arena — they all help serve as reminders of his impact.
Kobe Bryant’s best quotes
Bryant was known for his work ethic and commitment to his craft throughout his career. He often began training sessions early in the morning, already completing the first in a series of workouts throughout the day before his teammates and opponents were just waking up.
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“I knew that I was not going to be stopped,” he said in his documentary ‘Kobe Bryant’s Muse.’ ‘At the age of 18, this was my life, so you can’t possibly become better than me, because you’re not spending the time on it that I do. Even if you want to spend the time on it, you can’t, because you have other things. You have other responsibilities taking you away from it. So, I already won.”
Throughout his 20 years with the Lakers, Bryant experienced several highs and lows while in the public eye. Bryant and the Lakers finished .500 or better in 15 different seasons but went just 17-65 (.207) during his final season. The Hall of Famer won five NBA championships and was recognized on the NBA’s 75th anniversary team.
“Doubt is such a strange thing, there’ll be times where you succeed and there are times that you fail, so wasting your time doubting whether you’re gonna be successful or not is pointless,” Bryant said while talking about insecurities and self-doubt as a guest at the Milken Institute. “You just put one foot in front of the other and you control what you can control and then you see what the outcome is. If you win, great, you’re going to have to wake up the next day and do the journey over again. If you lose, it sucks, but you’re gonna have to wake up the next day and do the journey all over again anyway.”
Bryant’s impact was felt earlier this month in the debut of Unrivaled, a new 3-on-3 women’s basketball league. Aaliyah Edwards of the Mist wore purple and yellow braids in honor of Bryant. Her teammate, Jewell Loyd, is referred to as the Gold Mamba, a nickname Bryant gave her.
Bryant also continues to have an impact on the current generation of NBA players, with the likes of Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum calling Bryant his all-time favorite player.
Following his retirement, Bryant found ways to give to the next generation of athletes in as many ways as possible and helped oversee the Mamba Academy.
Several athletes have referenced the “Mamba mentality” in interviews, referring to the phrase Bryant coined about his mindset and approach.
“Mamba mentality is all about focusing on the process and trusting in the hard work when it matters most,” Bryant said in an interview with Amazon Book Review. “It’s the ultimate mantra for the competitive spirit. It started just as a hashtag that came to me one day, and it’s grown into something athletes — and even non-athletes — embrace as a mindset. Hard work outweighs talent — every time.
“Mamba mentality is about 4 a.m. workouts, doing more than the next guy and then trusting in the work you’ve put in when it’s time to perform. Without studying, preparation and practice, you’re leaving the outcome to fate. I don’t do fate.”
His most famous quote might be his simplest: ‘Job’s not finished.’
Kobe Bryant highlights
Bryant has no shortage of highlights — owing to his brilliance and the number of big games he played in.
Bryant’s most notable single-game performance was his 81-point game in a 122-104 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Jan. 22, 2006.
‘It was an honor to be a bug on the windshield as he had his all-time scoring affair,” Jalen Rose said on ESPN’s ‘Get Up’ said around the 15th anniversary of that game. “The second-highest scoring game in the history of the NBA. … It hits different because I used to be able to text him about this.”
Bryant made 28 of his 46 shot attempts and went 7-for-13 from the 3-point line. He also made 18 of his 20 free throw attempts.
It was the second-highest scoring performance in a single game, behind Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point performance in 1962.
Bryant also scored 65 points in a single game against the Portland Trail Blazers in 2007 and 62 points in three quarters of play against the Dallas Mavericks in 2005, but his 61-point effort against the New York Knicks in 2009 might be his other most notable scoring game; he set a Madison Square Garden record for most points in a single game in that contest, a record eventually surpassed by Knicks star Carmelo Anthony (by one point).
Bryant battled through injuries while on the court, including tearing his Achilles while driving to the basket against the Golden State Warriors in 2013. He was able to get up and walk over to make a pair of free throws before leaving the game.
‘I’ve never seen anyone to this day tear their Achilles and walk off the basketball court,’ Lakers legend Bryon Scott said on his ‘Fast Break’ podcast. ‘I’ve seen a whole lot of them tear and get carried off the court.’
Scott was Bryant’s head coach in 2015 when the former MVP tore his rotator cuff in his right shoulder during a game against the New Orleans Pelicans. Despite the injury, Bryant told Scott that he was still going to play and spent several more minutes in the game before the coach decided to pull the 2007-08 MVP as he began using his left hand to try and finish out the game.
Bryant stepped off the court in a Lakers jersey for the final time the following year. He scored 60 points in his finale and finished his career with 33,643 points. He ranks fourth all-time in scoring, behind LeBron James (41,396), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387) and Karl Malone (36,928).