Has anybody in the NBA ever had a bigger impact than the late great Kobe Bryant? A lot of people might know that he is a 2x NBA Champion, 2x Finals MVP, and an 18x All-Star. Kobe Bryant was one of the most decorated players in the game and this is because of his “Mamba Mentality.” But a lot of people don’t know how got his mentality. To understand Kobe’s mentality you need to know what contributed to his personality.
Kobe’s Upbringing
Kobe’s personality was something that made him a great player and was something that he got from his upbringing. Kobe was born on August 23, 1978 to former NBA player Joe Bryant and Pam Bryant, sister to former NBA player John Cox. As a kid Kobe was introduced to basketball by his dad and in a few years he started mastering layups, three pointers,
“jelly layups,” and “streetball skill.” When he Kobe was six, his dad, “Jelly Bean” Bryant quit the NBA and decided to move his family to Italy where he had an opportunity to play in the Italian Basketball League. There, Kobe would play soccer with his neighbors and practice basketball when they were done playing soccer.
Looking into Kobe’s personality more, he was isolated when his parents moved to Italy because he was different. According to the NY Post, Kobe was introduced to a whole new environment where he was isolated and had to rely on basketball to cope with all of this. At his dad’s game, he used to wow the Italian crowd when the team took breaks by going on the court and shooting and dribbling before eventually get kicked out by the refs.
Later when Kobe was in high school at Lower Merion High School in Pennsylvania, he did things like challenge his teammates and friends to games of one and one to a score of 100 and practiced as early as 5am and left at 7pm.
Eventually this work paid off in 1996 when he got drafted to the NBA because of wonderful skills that his father taught him as a kid. Years later, he is one of the greatest players in the game, but it took a lot of work, even when he was in the league.
Kobe’s Intense Work Ethic
Kobe was known for his work ethic throughout his career and this is part of his “Mamba Mentality.” According to Medium, Bryant was the first person to arrive to practice and was the last one to leave. Most notably Kobe couldn’t be outworked due to all of this practice which made him not just a good basketball player but one of the best athletes and earn the nickname “Black Mamba.”
Finally Kobe was known for his toughness in the game. For example, an article about Kobe Bryant tells that Kobe was very tough because he beat Matt Barnes, played through painful injuries during the 2009-10, injured his ankle in his first NBA finals game and came back to play and win.
Conflict with Shaq
There was something more important about Kobe that drove him to be the best. This is the drive to work harder and make teammates around him work harder, but this led to conflict that would forever change the basketball world in the 2000s. This is where the Shaq and Kobe conflict happened. It made both players push their limits to win three championships, but eventually Shaq didn’t like Kobe and their relationship was strained. Kobe called Shaq out of shape and Kobe didn’t like when Shaq called him a showboat. During 2004, the life of Kobe and Shaq was in turmoil as both players were clashing with each other in the media and it came to a point where the team lost the NBA finals and then decided to split up.
This beef and Kobe’s Mamba Mentality have a connection because after Shaq left, Kobe became a total monster. According to Basketball reference, Kobe averaged between 27 to 35 pts per game during the Lakers “low years” from the 2004-05 season to the 2006-07 season, which was very legendary for a guard.
A student from EIHS and varsity basketball player John Talt says, “Kobe’s mamba mentality is important because he makes people practice harder and make them get inspired.”
Just remember… Kobe Bryant’s “Mamba Mentality” is not just a basketball thing. It is a mentality that is used in everyday life to get better and better.
