January 26, 2020, the death of Kobe Bryant shocks the whole world

Any NBA, basketball, and sports fan in general remembers what he was doing on Sunday, January 26, 2020, shortly after 8:30 p.m. Because it was on this date and at this time that we learned, two years ago, of the sudden death of Kobe Bryant in a helicopter accident, along with his daughter Gianna and seven other people.

Twenty-four months later, if the "Black Mamba" has left to bite under other skies, it is still firmly anchored in the memories of its relatives, its fans, its former teammates and all those who had the opportunity to rub shoulders with him or admire him during his career.

Starting, of course, with the place where Kobe Bryant spent more than half of his life: Los Angeles. There, the situation has improved significantly since the retirement of the five-time NBA champion in 2016. The arrival in 2018 of LeBron James is certainly not unrelated, he who had also promised to pay tribute to his “brother” at heart by bringing the title back to the Lakers. A promise finally kept with a title in 2020, and ambitions still as high this season with the recruitment of Russell Westbrook. 10 years ago, this same Kobe Bryant went for Steve Nash and Dwight Howard to try to win a new title. He had failed.

Omnipresent at the Lakers

While he has just celebrated his 37th birthday and explains that he is in one of the best forms of his career, the "King" has still not mourned this tragic event. Proof that this wound cannot truly heal, despite the 731 days that have passed since then.

“The proverb wants time to do its work. As devastating and tragic as this event was, and still is for all of us involved, only time (will do its work). And that takes time. Everyone has their own grieving process. But I try not to put that in my head because it's too dark. »

Dark and terrible, this helicopter accident had however offered additional motivation to the "Purple & Gold". A kind of extra soul they had fed on throughout the 2019/20 season, to win the 17th Larry O'Brien trophy in their history. But since,

"Kobe and Gianna have guided the team all year," said Rob Pelinka, current vice-president of the Angelenos and former agent of Kobe Bryant, just after the coronation of October 2021. "Kobe's voice has been in my head all the time. Every day, every minute. […] To have had a friend who changed my life, and who helped me understand greatness and sacrifice, there is no greater gift. I know he is proud of me. »

A feeling of pride shared by Anthony Davis, who was able to date the late Lakers legend during the 2012 Olympic Games and who is now one of those wearing shoes from the famous Kobe range on his feet.

“We knew we were fighting to the end with a goal that didn't just concern us. It was for the Bryant family. […] Before the tragedy, he came to the games and he told us that it was our year, that we had to go there and seize this chance. He had faith in our team. He even had a lot of faith in this franchise to win the title. I'm sure he's watching us from up there and he's very proud. »

The model of more than one generation

What Kobe Bryant can also be proud of is the mark he left on a whole generation of basketball players, whether they were drafted in the 2000s or 2010s. From LeBron James to Jayson Tatum, passing by Dwyane Wade, Kevin Durant, Paul George, DeMar DeRozan or even Jamal Murray: everyone agrees that the 2008 MVP allowed them to become the players they have become over time.

"He's a player I watched when I was in college and then in high school," admitted LeBron James in January 2020, on the eve of his friend's death. “I used him as a role model, especially when I saw him go straight from high school to the NBA. That a 17-year-old kid comes to the NBA to have an impact on a franchise, it helped me. He unknowingly helped me by being able to do this. »

“Kobe was my idol,” said Kevin Durant in 2015. “I studied his game a lot and I wanted to be like him. Kobe was our Michael Jordan. I've been following Jordan's late career with the Wizards, and I realize Kobe is that player for our generation. »

"He was my Michael Jordan," says Paul George for USA Today. “He was the one every child wanted to be like. I started playing basketball thanks to Kobe. I approached the game based on how he played on both sides of the floor. I stole so many things from him and he left such an impression on me, when I was a kid, just with the way he played. Aside from the talent God gave me, I credit everything else [in my game] to him. »

"I didn't have a Michael Jordan when I arrived and my reference was Kobe," admitted Dwyane Wade in 2016. "He kind of pushed me to become the best player possible, especially at the start of my career. It matters a lot for the game but also for the players, individually. I have so much respect for him. His presence pushed me to want to become the best player possible to swim in the same waters as him and the other fullbacks before him. »

"Kobe Bryant was my source of inspiration", book in turn DeMar DeRozan, one of those whose offensive style most resembles that of Kobe Bryant. “Growing up, I started to understand and grasp the basics of basketball thanks to Kobe and being a Lakers fan. […] I remember begging my father to buy the newspapers so I could find out what he said after the games. It gave me a kind of connection with one of my favorite players and it pushed me to push myself more when I was playing sports, especially basketball. »

"My favorite player was Kobe", proclaimed in 2018 Jayson Tatum, among those who had the chance to work individually with the double MVP of the Finals. “When I was 4 or 5 years old, and my mother asked me who I wanted to be later, I answered that I wanted to be Kobe. My mother then asked me if I wanted to play in the NBA and I said to her: 'No, I want to be Kobe'. He was just my favorite player. I had his posters, all his jerseys. He was my player. If I play basketball, he is the reason. My earliest basketball memories are of him. »

"When Kobe came to the NBA, he became my dad's favorite player, so I started looking up to him [and admiring] his mentality. This desire he had to win, to never give up, this level of confidence in himself and in his abilities that he had… Everything,” says Jamal Murray.

The "Mamba Mentality" continues and is exported

This mentality evoked precisely by the leader of the Nuggets is one of the trademarks of Kobe Bryant. Known as "Mamba Mentality", it goes beyond the simple framework of basketball since it is taken up by a whole host of athletes around the world, who are inspired by it to give the best of themselves.

"I didn't realize he had such an impact on the lives of so many people outside of basketball," Anthony Davis said. “From football to American football, to players abroad or even those who do not play sports, it is always about the 'Mamba mentality'. »

Among these athletes abroad, there is in particular Naomi Osaka, one of the best tenniswomen of the moment, current world No. 3 and winner of a Grand Slam tournament three times. Because the Japanese was able to exchange a few times with the “Black Mamba”, as Jeannie Buss, woman of influence in the NBA universe, recently learned.

“I hadn't realized that he had given so much of his time and his knowledge to other people,” reported the owner of the Lakers. “Naomi Osaka, who won the US Open in tennis, spoke about the conversations she had with Kobe. He was like that. The lessons he taught us and what he stood for will not fade with time. He will always be part of this franchise. I know the relationship I had with Kobe and how generous he was with me with his support and guidance. He was like that. »

In the NBA, Kyrie Irving is certainly the one who makes the most reference to this "Mamba Mentality", he who was one of Kobe Bryant's little proteges for several years. Together, they had a special relationship, which they have continued to forge over time.

"We had great discussions for years and it was great," recalled the 2016 champion last January. “I had this type of student/mentor relationship with him and was able to ask him anything, even if I was nervous or fearful. It was so easy to discuss any type of question with him. Some were trying to copy what he was doing. Others sent him messages like 'How do you manage a period of awkwardness?'. He would say things like, 'The best shot is the next one. Find a solution, and you screw them all. Simple things but he helped you find the solution deep inside yourself. Still. »

A legacy visible on many levels

As previously mentioned with Anthony Davis, the legacy of the fourth best scorer in NBA history can be measured today through his range of shoes, soberly titled Kobe. If "AD" is one of the most famous muses, he is not alone.

Devin Booker, also considered one of the worthy heirs of Kobe Bryant, also wears sneakers emblazoned with the logo of his idol. Sneakers constantly adorned with a symbolic phrase for him, since the spring of 2016. Shoes increasingly difficult to find since the widow of Kobe Bryant broke up with Nike, and now it is very difficult to find these models. Even for NBA players.

"Kobe is with me every day," the Suns guard confided in 2021. "You can see it on my shoes with this 'Be Legendary'. It's a booster shot. And, even without that, I think of him two or three times a day. If not more…”

A Kobe Bryant jersey has sold for over $3 million!

Khris Middleton also finds a way to honor the memory of his illustrious predecessor, as soon as he puts on his shoes.

"We think of Kobe as soon as we put on the shoes," admitted the back of the Bucks. “We think of him, what he did for this sport, how quickly his life came to a halt. We remember that during a free agency, he wore several unique models, including Jordans. It was cool to see him with personalized Jordans, and now players are wearing personalized Kobes. It's like a transmission to the new generation. It shows that he was the Michael Jordan of our time. »

If Kobe's (new) shoes have become untraceable, these jerseys and the cards bearing his image are driving prices up. Thus, a Kobe Bryant jersey was snatched at the crazy price of 3.69 million dollars. It's simply the record for a basketball jersey, and only baseball legend Babe Ruth's outfits have done better in sports history.

This is a jersey worn and signed by Kobe Bryant during his rookie year. During this same sale, a Kobe Bryant rookie card found a buyer for 430,000 dollars, while another, from the 1994/95 season, reached 615,000 dollars!

Other ways can of course be found to perpetuate the Black Mamba legacy forever. While waiting for his statue to sit in front of the former Staples Center, now the Crypto.com Arena, Kobe entered the Hall Of Fame. It was in May 2021, and Vanessa Bryant had delivered a very beautiful speech from which we had retained this passage on Kobe and his audience.

"People don't know it, but one of the reasons my husband played through injuries and pain was because he said he remembered being a kid, sitting in the bleachers with his father to watch his favorite player play, ”she confided, looking at Michael Jordan, present at her side. “He remembered the car ride, the conversations and the excitement of being lucky enough to have a seat in the hall. Kobe didn't want to disappoint his fans, especially those in the 300 section who had saved up to see him play, the kids who had the same excitement as him. »

"I remember asking him why he couldn't rest for a game when he was in pain. He replied: “And the fans who saved up to see me play just once? ". He never forgot his fans. If he could, he would play every minute of every game. He loved you all so much. »

A few months later, it was Jayson Tatum who paid tribute to Kobe by wearing number 10 at the Tokyo Olympics. We also think of Pau Gasol who decided to call his daughter Elisabet Gianna in honor of his missing “niece” and his “brother”, whom he will obviously never forget.

Like a little all those who follow the NBA, finally. And this sad anniversary is the perfect opportunity to remember this iconic legend that was, is and will remain the "Black Mamba".