I want it to be one of the best
basketball players to ever play anything
else that was outside of that Lane I
didn't have time for I'll play games
with the flu I play games with 102
degree fever man our this obstacle
cannot define me it's not gonna [ __ ]
me it's not going to be responsible for
me stepping away for the game that I
love I'm gonna step away on my own turn
because when I retire I didn't want to
have to say I wish I would have done
more I would watch magic play I'd watch
Michael play and I would see them do
these unbelievable things and I'd say
you know can I get to that level I don't
know but let's find out
who would Shaq be if he had your work
ethic he'd be the greatest of all time
if Shaq had you'll work they'd be the
greatest of all time by sure he he'd be
the first to tell you that for sure I
mean this guy was a force like I have
never seen I mean it was crazy
you know a guy that size generally guys
at that size or a little timid and they
don't want to be tall they don't want to
be big and this dude was he did not care
he was mean
he was nasty he was competitive
he was vindictive I mean he was yeah I
wish he was in a Jawa had four twelve
rings yeah because I listen I don't I
don't deal with people that don't commit
at that level but then act as if they do
I don't deal with that I don't you know
you would say okay Kobe's not throwing
me the ball and you know media would
take it and run with it also stuff I'm
like well bro
if you were in shape by the time I run
down on the fast break and run back and
then run down you're still coming down
the first time bro like what the hell do
you want me to do right so a lot of our
contention came from that came from that
and even though he was older you were
still fit confronting him you didn't you
didn't kill on a chair man lay one bro
from day one I knew for sure Rick Fox my
teammates they all thought I was
absolutely crazy the day me and Shaq got
in a fistfight after that day they were
like okay Kobe you're certifiable this
fight I'm not backing down this
okay no you know there's a there's a
level of respect and for Shaq to by the
way I know he's told me that that day
was a big turning point for him because
it was like you know he's generally used
to talking trash and saying what he
wants and nobody really stepping up and
challenging him on that and when he saw
me challenge him on that he was like
this kids crazy all right I can win with
that so at 13 years old I had a I had a
kill list and so you know they used to
do these rankings who Street and Smith
basketball rankings and I was nowhere to
be found because I was like six four
scrawny like 160 pounds soaking wet so I
was like 57 on the list and so I will
look at 56 55 all the way up to number
one who these players are with club
teams they played for so when we're
going to a you travel circuit I got to
hunt them down right and so that became
my mission in high school is to check
off every other person all those 56
other names hunt them down and knock
them down so like in that 13 years old
and I played the longer game because my
game wasn't about being better than you
at 13 it was it'd be better than you
when you know the chips are really owned
on the line so we played at 13 I was
size you up and see what your strengths
and weaknesses are how do you approach
the game are you silly about it are you
goofy about it are you good at it just
because you're bigger and stronger than
everybody else
right or is there actually thought and
skill that you put into it right and
when I play I play to my weaknesses I
wouldn't play to my strengths I play to
my weaknesses because when you're
playing summer basketball there's so
many games so there's not a lot of skill
work being done so when are you gonna
get better right when you're playing in
competition situations you're only
playing To Your Strengths why because
you want to win so what I would do I was
work on the things during those games
that I was weak at left hand pull-up
jump shot post game right so I have a
strategy and so then fast forward to
when I'm 17 and my game is completely
well-rounded and that player at 13 that
I saw at 13 is still doing the same 17
now you got a problems right okay I shot
five air balls on national TV in front
of millions of people that cost us the
series and I'm 18 I'm fine dude well you
know it's you got to look at the reality
of the situation you know like for me
it's not you know you kind of got to get
over yourself it's not about you man
like okay you feel embarrassed you're
not that important get over yourself
yeah that's where you go get over
yourself right like you're worried about
how people may perceive you and like
you're walking around and it's
embarrassing because you shot five air
balls get over yourself
right and then after that it's okay well
why did those air balls happen got it
high school year before we play 35 games
max right week in between spaced out
plenty of time to rest and the NBA is
back to back to back to back to back to
back to back I didn't have the legs so
you look at the shot every shot was
online every shot was online but every
shot was short I got to get stronger
I got to Train differently the weight
training program that I'm doing I got a
tailor it for an 82-game season so that
when the playoffs come around my legs
are stronger and that ball gets there so
I look at it with rationale and say okay
well the reason why I shot air balls
because my legs aren't there I got along
make sure they'll be there that was it
done done then we had a game against
Toronto in 2000
and Vince was tearing the lega my back
was checked jacked
but like the perception of that like but
Kobe's missing the game against Toronto
Vince Carter because my back was really
spasming but people will be like what oh
he's ducking Vince excuse me
no I don't think so so I would be in the
layup line like okay there's a lot of
days where you know you can rest and
recover today ain't one of them your
back can bother you any other day they
bother me today we're going P gonna have
to see me today yeah oh man yeah you're
playing against the Golden State
Warriors score is 107 109 you guys are
close to getting into the playoffs you
know exactly what happens in the game
you go up you're about to take your shot
and then all of a sudden boom your
Healy's happens right friend of mine
NEMA he is here just to listen to he
played ball and he told me sis matric I
don't think you understand he says when
I told my achilles in high school this
for friends of mine dragged me to my
house I was crying from there straight
to the hospice I have no clue how the
hell this guy did it he went and hit the
free throws and then you walked off the
stage
yeah and he got the surgery
how the hell do you tolerate that kind
of pain you know I got uses I tell this
example and I think it's the best way to
explain it you know you have a hamstring
injury pull your hamstring really really
badly you can barely walk right let
alone play anything soccer basketball
volleyball whatever it is can't do
anything you're at home all of a sudden
of a fire breaks out in the home the
kids are upstairs
wife is wherever she may be you know
what's going down all right I'm willing
to bet that you're gonna forget about
your hamstring
you're gonna sprint upstairs you're
gonna grab your kids you'll make sure
your wife's good you're getting out of
that house the lives of your family are
more important than the injury of your
hamstring and so when the game is more
important than the injury itself you
don't feel that but you go into the
locker room and one of the reporters
comes up to you and he says to you Kobe
are you convinced that they told you
it's probably torn Achilles they're
gonna do an MRI are you pretty convinced
that's what it is
and your ass and answer is yeah then one
of the reporters says but if anyone is
gonna get through this it's probably you
right you put your head down and you say
oh man the killings were like the kiss
of death
yeah athletes like yes I don't I don't
know if I can do this I don't know
there's so many factors is the surgery
that has to take place the surgery has
to go well right and then just it's a
tendon I'm not dealing with anything
that's muscular things that I can
control I can't control a tendon you
know and so I like I don't know and then
thinking about what that process of
recovery is going to look like it's a
long one do I want to do that [ __ ] I
don't I don't know if I want to do it I
don't know
so that was the hardest part you don't
know if you want to do it or you don't
know if you are gonna be able to come
back from it both like oh no if I can do
it I don't know if I want to do without
it miss it's a long
yes process polite when I went in the
trainer's room my kids are in there and
you know they're looking at you and
stuff and I'm looking at them and I'm
like you know sorry
dad's gonna be alright would be fine
it'll be alright it'll be alright it'll
be alright as a parent you gotta set the
example you gotta set the example this
this is another obstacle this obstacle
cannot define me it's not going to
[ __ ] me it's not gonna be responsible
for me stepping away for the game that I
love I'm gonna step away on my own terms
and that's when the decision was made
that you know what I'm doing it don't
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