“The definition of greatness is to inspire the people next to you,” Kobe Bryant once said and he always believed in this life lesson.
Kobe held that inspiring people was the true meaning of greatness and not the colossal wealth he amassed as a world-class basketball player.
“It’s not something that lives and dies with one person,” he remarked knowing not that he would leave the world in 2020.
Kobe died in a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020, alongside his 13-year-old daughter Gianna Bryant and seven others.
WHAT LIFE LESSONS DID KOBE BRYANT TEACH?
But, even in death, he taught many people beautiful lessons about life and about pushing harder every day.
Kobe, in his own words, admitted that he never stopped – he kept pushing and would figure things out along the way.
“Rest at the end, not in the middle,” he quotes. “That’s something I live by; I’m not gonna rest I will keep on pushing now.”
His greatest motivation in life was being with his family because it gave him a lot of joy. Family defined what happiness was for him.
Kobe Bryant. Photo/Marca
Kobe would later realize that he had a lot of compassion and empathy and it didn’t mean that he was soft. It is this realization that made him, and his Lakers Club a great team.
Losing was exciting for Kobe – as weird as it sounds – but it meant there were different ways to get better. Losing a game meant there were certain weaknesses that needed to be addressed.
HOW DID KOBE BRYANT PLAN FOR RETIREMENT?
Known as a man of means in the world of investment, Kobe was always afraid of how his life would be after retirement. It was such a huge mountain to climb but he never figured things out until an injury struck him.
While nursing an Achilles injury, he thought to himself “what happens if my career ends right now?” This was the push he needed to figure things out and he got down to a retirement plan.
Bryant made an investment in a sports beverage called Body Armor back in 2014. Bryant’s initial $6 million investment in Body Armor is now valued at close to $800 million eight years later.
Though he is gone, he left his family a fortune to support their lives and those of generations to come.
WHAT DOES KOBE BRYANT’S BOOK TEACH?
In his book, The Mamba Mentality: How I Play, Kobe taught two things. The process and craft.
“The process is really about the process of preparing you through injury, recovery studying of the game.”
“The craft is the actual performance and the tactics so a lot of things I learned in the game through were through photos.”
It teaches everything about basketball and also teaches about the value of hard work.
HOW DID KOBE BRYANT DIE?
As the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) wrapped up its hearing on February 9, 2021, authorities couldn’t help but think back to the fateful hours before those nine innocent lives were lost. They had no idea what was in store for them on that day.
By 7 a.m. on that Sunday, Kobe attended church service before driving from his house on the Newport Coast to Santa Ana’s John Wayne Airport. While a storm loomed overhead, the early morning sun was slowly slipping away, but the basketball legend was unconcerned.
On the second day of its first-ever tournament, the Orange County basketball team that Kobe coached was ready to play. As anxious as they were to improve on their 0-1 record, “Team Mamba” found that simply driving around the block wouldn’t get them to their next round of games as planned.
Kobe Bryant helicopter Crash. Photo/Sky News
That’s why Kobe volunteered to fly Gianna and several of her teammates, as well as their parents, to the event instead of making the exhausting trek himself. Is it any surprise that the NBA star has travelled by helicopter for several games in his senior years?
Even the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department grounded its helicopters due to bad weather conditions, so it’s not surprising that other pilots were grounded as well. Ara Zobayan, Kobe’s pilot, was the first person he turned to when he feared Gianna and the others would miss their midday kickoff.
A calm and composed Ara informed Kobe that the day’s flight had been approved by both he and the airport’s flight coordinator. Kobe and Gianna boarded the Mamba Copter at 9:06 am with their guests—three of Gianna’s teammates and their parents—and set off for their destination.
Ara’s trip took off without a hitch, but he flew low rather than bank high over the Hollywood Hills like he had done the previous day. The chopper was held in a holding pattern for 11 minutes by controllers from the Hollywood Burbank airport as they approached Glendale.
It wasn’t long before a buzzing sound was heard in the distance, far too close to be coming from an aircraft. The sound got louder and louder as it travelled east until an abrupt and painful thump was heard. Radio silence followed.
The county coroner described the scene as “brutal,” with the charred remains of the aircraft still alight as rescuers looked for survivors. Seeing the scattered debris and raging flames made obvious the awful fact they had understood from the beginning—all people on board were dead.
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