Many L.A. Lakers fans were heartbroken when Kobe Bryant announced his retirement from
the NBA in November 2015.
In a poem called "Dear Basketball," posted to The Players' Tribune, he wrote,
"You gave a six-year-old boy his Laker dream.
And I'll always love you for it.
But I can't love you obsessively for much longer.
This season is all I have left to give."
"What can I say?
Mamba out."
Kobe certainly didn't disappoint after hanging up his uniform.
The superstar athlete was in the midst of a new and exciting chapter when he and his
13-year-old daughter, Gianna, died in a horrific helicopter crash on January 26th, 2020, along
with seven other people.
For those fans who may not know what he'd been up to in the last few years, here's a
closer look at what Kobe Bryant's life was like after retiring from the NBA.
Behind Bryant's athletic prowess was a creative man inspired to tell his complex life story
through art.
In fact, the NBA star transformed his retirement poem, "Dear Basketball," into an award-winning
short.
The project features Kobe narrating the poem over a hand-drawn animation depicting his
life from childhood to adulthood.
It's a moving piece that earned him critical praise.
According to Deadline, Kobe explained,
"I love storytelling and writing and producing, and working with other young talent to bring
stories to life to either inform or inspire or challenge the next generation."
Kobe won the Academy Award for best animated short in 2018, sharing this inspirational
message in his acceptance speech:
"I mean, as basketball players, we are really supposed to shut up and dribble.
But I am glad we do a little bit more than that."
Bryant could have easily spent his retirement coasting on his fortune, but he chose to focus
on inspiring young children instead.
In August 2018, he launched a podcast for kids called The Punies, featuring scripted
audio stories centering around a character called Puny Pete.
Bryant, who created and directed the series, based it on his childhood, stating in a press
release:
"Having spent my whole life playing basketball, there were many times I wasn't on the winning
team.
However, those experiences ultimately proved the most valuable because they taught me perseverance,
determination, and teamwork.
As the father of athletes myself, I created 'The Punies' so that these stories will not
only entertain the whole family but inspire young listeners to reach their full potential."
The Punies was in its second season at the time of Bryant's passing.
Bryant took on one of the biggest names in sports - Gatorade - by becoming a major investor
in a competing sports drink called BodyArmor.
According to Business Insider, Bryant wrote and directed a series of ads for the company
that threw some serious shade at the competition.
Featuring a slew of big-name athletes, the spots suggested that other sports drinks are
outdated, and commercials concluded with the tagline:
"Thanks, Gatorade.
We'll take it from here."
BodyArmor's CEO told ESPN that Bryant's input proved invaluable, explaining,
"When I teamed up with Kobe, I thought I was getting an elite basketball player with great
vision.
I wound up with an Oscar winner who has his fingerprints all over our creative that we
deeply benefited from."
After announcing his retirement, Bryant certainly capitalized on quality time with his beautiful
family.
Every other photo on his Instagram account was an adorable shot of his kids, whether
it was a family outing for Halloween, or a pic of him swimming in a pool with one of
his daughters.
The basketball legend was an exceptionally proud papa when he announced the arrival of
his fourth baby, Capri, in June 2019.
One of Bryant's greatest passions was watching his daughter, Gianna, mature into a basketball
star.
He proudly told late-night host Jimmy Kimmel how Gianna would respond whenever fans would
approach Kobe and say:
"You gotta have a boy, you and V gotta have a boy, you gotta have somebody to carry on
the tradition and the legacy, and she's like, 'Oy, I got this.'
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