August 23, 2024 • 38 mins
On this episode of Our American Stories, on February 24th, 2020, more than 20,000 individuals gathered in the Los Angeles Staples Center to remember the life of Kobe Bryant. From his mentors to his mentees, all shared their own personal, heart-moving stories about his dedication and character.
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Speaker 1 (00:10):
This is Lee Habib and this is our American Stories,
the show where America is the star and the American people.
Up next, you're going to be hearing stories about the
late great Kobe Bryant. He died in a tragic helicopter
crash along with his daughter, and we're sharing with you
eulogies from his memorial service in February of twenty twenty.
(00:33):
He broke all kinds of records, third in the history
of the NBA in scoring until Lebron James passed him.
Also five NBA championships. Very few players have managed that. Also,
there's his fall from grace, real life problems with his
marriage on top of that, very public problems, and his
eventual redemption. We're going to share with you some of
(00:55):
the eulogies from that day of his memorial service back
in twenty twenty. First up is Sabrina and Unescu and
she was at the time a star player at the
University of Oregon. She ended up becoming a mentor to
Kobe's daughter Gianna otherwise known as Jiji. And Bryant, well,
he was Sabrina's mentor. Let's take a listen to Sabrina
(01:16):
and Unescu.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
Growing up, I only knew one way to play the
game of basketball, fierce, with obsessive focus. I was unapologetically competitive.
I wanted to be the best. I love the work
even when it was hard, especially if it was hard.
I knew I was different, that my drive was different.
I grew up watching Kobe Bryant game after game, ring
(01:39):
after ring, living his greatness without apology. I wanted to
be just like him, to love every part of the competition,
to be the first to show up, in the last
to leave, to love the grind, to be your best
when you don't feel your best, and make other people
around you the best version of themselves. And to wake
up and do it again the next day. That's what
(02:00):
I did, wake up, grind and get better. A year ago,
my team Oregon was playing at usc The morning of
the game, our coaches told us that there was a
surprise for the day. I was thinking Nike sent us
some new shoes or swag or something. Kobe walks in
with his daughter, Gianna and two of her teammates. They
sat courtside while my jaw sat dropped, and that was
(02:23):
the first.
Speaker 3 (02:23):
Time I met Kobe.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
Kobe, Gigi and her teammates came into the locker room
after the game. He congratulated us on the wind, but said,
and I'll never forget. Don't shoot yourselves in the foot.
He met, don't settle. The national championship wasn't far and
our goal was to win it all. I remember Gigi
excited and smiling in the locker room. I'd always watch
a ton of film of her playing basketball. She had
(02:48):
a fade away better than mine. I asked her where
she wanted to play ball in college, and she said Yukon.
She had the will and determination to be able to
play wherever she wanted. She and her teammates hung out
with us for a while, starstrucked in a little shy,
but always observing whichever school she would come to choose.
It didn't matter if I represented the present of the
(03:09):
women's game. Gigi was the future, and Kobe knew it.
So we decided to build the future together. I worked
out twice with Gigi over the summer. I'd gone down
to help Kobe coach his team. Gigi had so much
of her dad's skill set. You could tell the amount
of hours they spent in the gym practicing her moves.
She smiled all the time, but when it was game time,
(03:30):
she was ready to kill. I remember one time someone
grabbed her jersey and she sort of just knocked him
down and then stepped right over him. Me and Kobe
looked at each other, smiling, and he goes, I don't
know where she learned that from. I laughed and said,
I do. You can't teach that, and definitely not at
her age. Kobe was right, she had it. She always
(03:51):
wanted to learn to go to every game she could college, NBA, WNBA.
Kobe was helping worth that because he saw it in her,
just like he saw in me. His vision for others
is always bigger than what they imagine for themselves. His
vision for me was way bigger than my own. More importantly,
he didn't just show up in my life and leave.
Speaker 3 (04:11):
He stayed.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
We kept in touch, always texting, calls, game visits. I'd
drop a triple double and have a text from him,
A noble triple double I see with a fleximoji. Another game,
another text, YO, beast mode or easy money. He taught
me his step back. He told me that if I
could bring that to my game, it'd be over Fanny
Defender trying to guard me. He was giving me the
(04:35):
blueprint he was given Gigi the same blueprint. He made
it so that the outsiders who at worked everyone else,
who were driven to be just a little bit different
every single day, to make those around them, behind them
and above them a little bit better every single day.
I wanted to be a part of the generation that
changed basketball for Gigi and her teammates were being born
(04:55):
female didn't mean being born behind where greatness wasn't divided
by j You have too much to give to say silent.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
That's what he.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
Lived through Gigi, through me, through his investment in women's basketball.
That was his next great act. A girl dad. Basketball
in many ways was just a metaphor. I still text
them even though he's not here. The last one I
sent him said, I miss you. May you rest in peace,
my dear friend. The texts go through, but no response.
(05:25):
Sometimes I find myself still waiting. It's so strange to
describe him or Gigi in the past tense. You don't
get used to that. The week after the accident, I
was in Colorado. I had a game, and like I
do before every game, I prayed. This time I was
thinking about Kobe and Gigi. His voice is still in
my head, even if his body is not on this earth,
(05:46):
And all I wanted was a sign that in some
way he still heard me too. I looked off into
the sky and there it was a beautiful golden sunset,
the boldest yellow lakers yellow, and further in the distance,
a helico. There was my sign that he will forever
be with me. The last line from one of his books,
(06:08):
walk until the darkness is a memory, and you become
the sun on the next traveler's horizon. I ask each
of you, every girl, dad, every human here with a voice,
a platform and a heart, to not let his son
set shine for us, for our sport, where he once
did invest in us with the same passion and drive
and respect and love as he did his own daughter.
(06:31):
In the end, she was a sun just starting to rise,
and God did she glow. May their light forever shine.
Kobe and Gigi. I love you forever, Thank you.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
And you've been listening to Sabrina ian Escu, And what
a story she tells. She says, I wake up, I grind,
I get better. That might as well have been Kobe
Bryant's life motto too. And my goodness. His last and
ultimate role was sabrine and nailed. He was a girl.
Dad is next great act basketball a mere metaphor when
(07:05):
we come back more of the remarkable eulogies delivered on
Kobe Bryant's behalf Here on Our American Stories, liehbib here,
the host of our American Stories. Every day on this show,
we're bringing inspiring stories from across this great country, stories
(07:27):
from our big cities and small towns. But we truly
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a lot. Go to Ouramerican Stories dot com and give.
(08:09):
And we returned to our American Stories and our look
back at basketball legend Kobe Bryant's memorial service. And often
there's no better way to get to know who a
person was by the nature and quality of the eulogies
delivered on their behalf. Earlier, we heard from a great
college ballplayer, Sabrina Yunescu, and this next speaker is another
(08:30):
powerful one who was a remarkable player as well. Dianna Trazi,
by the way, a three time NCAA and w NBA champion.
Speaker 4 (08:39):
In nineteen ninety six, I was a lanky, awkward freshman
in high school, obsessively shooting night after night in my driveway.
On the nights the Lakers played, I would miss a
second of the game. Every time out, every commercial, I
run to the front yard to imitate my favorite Laker, Kobe.
(09:07):
On a few lucky occasions, my dad would come home
from work. He was a metal sheet worker in Los Angeles,
and he'd come home.
Speaker 3 (09:15):
With Laker tickets.
Speaker 4 (09:20):
Watching Kobe play at the Great Western Form as a
rookie made this little girl believe she could be a
Laker one day. It was like getting to know myself
every single day. He made it okay to play with
an edge that borderlined crazy early on St.
Speaker 3 (09:38):
Mama.
Speaker 4 (09:38):
Mentality was in full effect. Years later, when I spent
time with Kobe at the two thousand and eight Olympics,
I learned firsthand that it just wasn't limited to the
basketball court. His competitive fire ran through his veins, just
like many of us today. Every single workout I end
(10:03):
the same way with the Kobe game winner. Three hard
dribbles going right, left foot plant, pivot, swing right, leg through, elevate, square.
Speaker 3 (10:18):
Up, follow through, five in a row, and I got
to go home.
Speaker 4 (10:27):
It's that exact same shot that won us a championship
in Phoenix in twenty fourteen. Kobe's willingness to do the
hard work and make the sacrifice every single day inspired
me and resonated with the city of Los Angeles. We
struggled together, we grew together, we celebrated victories together. The
(10:54):
same passion we all recognized in Kobe obviously inherited. Her
skill was undeniable at an early age. I mean, who
has a turnaray fadeaway jumper at eleven? Lebron barely got
it today, But it was her curiosity about the game
(11:22):
that was pushing her to pick up the basketball every
single day. Gigi was in the midst of the best
times as a basketball player's career. No responsibilities, no expectations,
just basketball with your best friends. Every weekend was a
new adventure, an opportunity to learn how to work and
grow together as a unit. As a young kid, there's
(11:46):
nothing you looked forward to more than long hut summer
days in the gym with your homies. The same way
Kobe inspired a generation of basketball players. Gigian turned Kobe's
interest in coaching and teaching the game. I'm sure I'm
at the only one who received the text from Kobe
asking what drills they were doing when they were thirteen. GG,
in many ways represents the future of women's basketball, a
(12:11):
future where a young woman aspires to play in the
WNBA the same way I wanted to be a Laker.
GG already had goals to play for Yukon that inhself
showed her fearless mentality. She represents a time where a
young girl doesn't need permission to play. Her skill would
(12:31):
command respect. The last time I saw Gigi, the mamas
were in Phoenix for a big AU tournament. Kobe brought
them to the locker room to watch practice. I always
remember the look on Gig's face. It was a look
of excitement, a look of belonging, a look of fierce determination.
(12:56):
As a daughter, a sister, wife and mother. There we
embrace Vanessa, Natalia Bianca and Capri. We promised to carry
Gigi's legacy. Kobe Los Angeles, Los Angeles, Nukam.
Speaker 3 (13:17):
When Mucho.
Speaker 1 (13:24):
And you were listening to Diana Tarasi and that Yukon
Star and Yukon well the dominant NCAA power in women's
college basketball. And that's where Kobe's daughter wanted to go.
And Kobe well, he told her the sky is the limit,
and he got her to know that program, and got
her to know the coach of that program, the great
(13:45):
Geno Ariama. And what what interested Gino is that Kobe
Bryant had talked to him often, not about how to
become a great player. That Kobe was now in a
new role as a dad and as a husband and father,
and that was the role of coach. And is anyone
who's ever watched Kobe knows or knows about him, knows
(14:06):
he wasn't always the most coachable athlete. Let's hear Gino.
Speaker 5 (14:11):
How ironic that he would talk to me about coaching.
The uncoachable one wants to talk about coaching. Probably the
most uncoachable player in the NBA during his career wants
to know about coaching. And I wanted to know why
he said, I'm coaching my daughter's team. I said, oh
my god, that poor kid. So when I watched highlights
(14:38):
of her playing and on about the third or fourth
time she touched the ball, Jianna passed it when she
was open. I thought, she's not listening to her father.
(15:01):
So he would call and say, what kind of defensive
drills should I do? We have practice tonight, We're going
to work on defense. What do you think is the
most important thing in teaching?
Speaker 6 (15:09):
Man?
Speaker 5 (15:10):
The man further proof he never listened to one word
any of his coaches told him. So I try to
explain them, I said, Kobe, they're thirteen years old. I
think you ought to just say, hey, you know, see
the kid with the ball, try not to let her
go by you, and see if you're guarding the other
guys hate see the kid with the ball over there,
don't let her throw the ball to your guy. Keep
(15:31):
it kind of simple, you know. He said, No, I
want to know, like, what are the rotations when they drive?
I said, come on, come on, come on. So these
are the conversations that we have, both as basketball people
and as dads who have ever coached their kids. If
you've ever been in that situation, like a lot of
(15:53):
people here in this room probably have been. And I
remember when Gigi came, as you saw on that video,
she came to the very first game that she came to,
and she came into the locker room and here she is,
and the look on her face, the smile, the way
(16:16):
her eyes just took everything in, how excited she was
to be around in.
Speaker 3 (16:23):
Her mind, royalty.
Speaker 5 (16:25):
It's ironic her father's royalty, and she's excited to be
around royalty that looks just like what she wants to be.
And the most impressive thing about that point in time
was how Kobe stepped as far back as he could
so anyone taking pictures, anyone there would not know that
(16:48):
this was Kobe Bryan's daughter. This was her moment, This
is where her time to shine. This was her time
to experience all the things that he's experienced his whole life.
He was being dad, he wasn't being Kobe Bryant, and
he was allowing gg to be gg, not Kobe Bryant's daughter.
(17:11):
In today's day and age, that's a hell of a
thing for parents to be able to do.
Speaker 1 (17:17):
More Kobe Bryant's stories. We're hearing some of the eulogies.
It was a remarkable memorial service in twenty twenty. More
Kobe Bryant's stories when we return here on our American stories,
(18:13):
and we returned to our American stories and our look
back at Kobe Bryant's memorial service. And these stories, boy,
they're worth replaying, repeating, and retelling. As most people know
the basketball accolades, they don't know the life he lived
and how he redeemed himself after some terrible, terrible missteps
(18:34):
with his wife and his family. You've heard a lot
about fatherhood over this broadcast. You're about to hear a
little bit about Kobe the husband. Up next is Kobe's widow,
Vanessa Bryant.
Speaker 7 (18:46):
He isn't going to be here to drop Bianca Capri
off at pre k or kindergarten. He isn't going to
be here to tell me to get a grip V
when we have to leave the kindergarten classroom, or show
up to our daughter's doctor's visits for my own moral support.
He isn't going to be able to walk our girls
down the aisle or spin me around on the dance
(19:08):
floor while singing p YT to me. But I want
my daughters to know and remember the amazing person husband
and father. He was the kind of man that wanted
to teach the future generations to be better and keep
them from making his own mistakes. He always liked working
and doing projects to improve kids' lives. He taught us
(19:30):
all valuable lessons about life and sports through his NBA career,
his books, his show Detail, and his Punies podcast series,
and were so thankful he let those lessons and stories
behind for us. He was thoughtful and wrote the best
love letters and cards. And Gigi had his wonderful ability
to express her feelings into paper and make you feel
(19:53):
her love through her words. She was thoughtful like him.
They were so easy to love. Everyone naturally gravitated towards them.
They were funny, happy, silly, and they loved life. They
were so full of joy and adventure. God knew they
(20:15):
couldn't be on this earth without each other. He had
to bring them home to Heaven together. Babe, you take
care of our Chi Chi and I got Nanny Baby
and Coco. We're still the best team. We love and
(20:39):
miss you Boo Boo and Chee Chee. May you both
rest in peace and have fun in heaven until we
meet again one day. We love you both and miss
you forever and always.
Speaker 1 (20:55):
Mommy, And there was almost nothing to say, and what
class and what beauty. And we have to remember there
was a time in Kobe's life where he hit bottom.
There were sexual assault charges, a lot of people, probably
in her years, saying dump him, what did he do?
The charges were dropped and Kobe had to rehabilitate himself,
(21:18):
not just in front of a few people, but the
whole world. And his wife hung in there and they
had a life together. There was forgiveness, and there was
clearly redemption. He came to the NBA when he was
seventeen years old. His parents had to sign his contract.
He wasn't old enough, came right out of high school.
(21:38):
And by the way, part of that redemption was playing
with the Redeemed Team under Mike Shryzhewsky, which I wrote
about in a piece in Newsweek. He had been a
young guy, got a lot of attention, but ultimately became
the villain in his own story. He'd run Shaquille O'Neill
off the team, He'd run Phil Jackson off the team,
(21:58):
and then he'd almost run his own own family into
the ground. But to watch a man come back and
fix it and heal it and grow and get better,
we all watch this. And he once wrote about this,
actually because he was a remarkable writer, and here's what
he wrote about it as he was retiring. No hero
is perfect and no villain is completely void of heroic intentions.
Speaker 3 (22:22):
We all live.
Speaker 1 (22:24):
As both, he wrote on his website on the day
he retired. What sets the good ones apart is how
they use their inner villain to create something epic and beautiful.
It's living as a hero villain. The hero villain channels
fear of rejection, anger, self doubt and turns it all
into strength and courage and power and determination and love.
(22:49):
And those are words of a guy who also, in
his last act here on this earth, took communion with
his daughter at his local Catholic church and prayed with
her before stepping on that helicopter. Up next to the
memorial service was Rob Polenka, not only Kobe's agent for
his entire career, but a close personal friend, vacation together
(23:11):
mentor pal, and in the end, a guy, well, two
guys who loved each other. He's now the general manager
of the Los Angeles Lakers. And here is Rob Polenka
on Kobe the husband.
Speaker 8 (23:25):
When God made Kobe, the next great act of his
was to fashion Vanessa. I know this because they are
matched perfectly together, and I've had a front row seat
to being witness to their love for twenty years. I
remember all the way back to their wedding day in
two thousand and one.
Speaker 3 (23:40):
In typical Kobe.
Speaker 8 (23:41):
Fashion, he wanted to master every detail of that day
to reflect his love for Vanessa. One of the things
he was most excited about was carrying Vanessa in his
arms over the threshold of their home as a husband
and wife for the first time. Vanessa brought out Kobe's
romantic side like nobody else in the world could. He
loved to celebrate holidays with her, her Birthday, anniversary, and
(24:05):
especially Valentine's Day. Often he would call me to brainstorm
his incredible ideas for special gifts and romantic occasions with her.
He even loved to write poems and letters to her
and make them into beautiful keepsake books. Simply put, Kobe's
love for Vanessa was the energy for his life. One
particular story captures the depth of Kobe's love for Vanessa.
(24:28):
There was a stretch of days when work travel was
causing Kobe to be away from Vanessa for longer than
he wanted. He called me to explain how hard this
stretch was for him. One night on the phone, Kobe
noticed there was a grand piano in the hotel suite
he was staying in. He set it sat by a
tall window under the moonlit sky.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
During one of.
Speaker 8 (24:49):
Our calls, he shared an idea with me. He said
he hadn't been sleeping much at night because he was
missing me and the.
Speaker 3 (24:56):
Girl so much while he was away.
Speaker 8 (24:59):
He wanted to live in his love for Vanessa, so
at night, under the moonlit sky, he vowed to teach
himself by ear to play the first movement of Beethoven's
Moonlit Sonata. When he told me this, I thought there's
no way. I knew he wasn't a trained musician and
(25:20):
that was a really difficult piece of music to play.
But Kobe's passion and love for Vanessa, combined with the
patience and focus that only the Black Mamba has, made
this seemingly impossible goal a reality. That next morning, Kobe
called and played me the first few measures the next
morning more by the end of the week, he had
(25:42):
the entire piece mastered, and he played it for me
over the phone without a mistake. In my heart, I
knew that moment was one of Kobe's grandest feats for
his deepest love. Kobe had mastered one of the greatest
piano movements ever written as a symbol of one of
the most beautiful loves.
Speaker 3 (25:59):
The world has ever seen.
Speaker 8 (26:02):
To close, I will say this, just as the sun
lights the moon to guide us through the night, Kobe
and GG will continue to shine light in all of us.
But unlike the sun, Kobe and Gg's fuel will never
ever burn out because their light is eternal. Yes, the
axis of our world shifted that frightful morning a few
(26:24):
weeks back, but with Kobe and Gigi's moonlight, we will
never have to live in the darkness of night again.
We will all journey on until one day we will
be in heaven together again, and this time it will
be forever. I love you, dear Kobe and precious Gig.
Speaker 1 (26:47):
And you listen to both Vanessa Bryant, Kobe's wife, and
Rob Polenka, his agent and ultimately the general manager of
the Los Angeles Lakers, and imagine getting the call not
about salary, not about trades. Imagine calling your agent talking
to him about writing or learning a piece of music
(27:09):
you want to play for the wife you miss, not
a typical conversation with an agent. I would submit, I'm
sure Rob would agree. More stories to come up next,
Michael Jordan to talk about his friend Kobe Bryant here
on our American Stories. And we returned to our American
(27:39):
stories and the final portion of our look back at
Kobe Bryant's memorial service, and we have saved the best
for a last. In nineteen ninety six, Michael Jordan faced
an eighteen year old Kobe Bryant on the court for
the very first time. Midway through the game, while playing,
Kobe asked him for some tips on his jump shot.
Kobe scored thirty three against his wayt idle. That night,
(28:01):
Jordan scored thirty six and won the game. That they
developed a sort of father son relationship over time, which
then developed into a brotherly one. Here's Michael Jordan.
Speaker 6 (28:13):
You know all of us have brothers and sisters. For
whatever reason, I always tend to get in your stuff,
your closet, your shoes, everything. It was a nuisance, if
I can say that word. But that nuisance turned into
love over a period of time, just because the admiration
(28:39):
that they had for you as big brothers of big sisters.
Speaker 3 (28:44):
The questions.
Speaker 6 (28:46):
They're wanting to know every little detail about life that
they were about them. Barker, he used to call me,
text me eleven thirty two thirty three o'clock in the
morning talking about post up moves, footwork, and sometimes the triangle.
(29:14):
At first it was an aggravation, but then it turned
into a certain passion.
Speaker 3 (29:27):
This kid had passion like you would never know. It's
an amazing thing about passion.
Speaker 6 (29:35):
If you love something, if you have a strong passion
for something, you would go to the extreme to try
to understand or try to get it. Either ice cream, cokes, hamburgers,
whatever you have a love for you have to walk,
(29:55):
you would go get it.
Speaker 3 (29:56):
If you have to beg some on it, you would
go get it.
Speaker 6 (30:00):
What Kobe Bryant was to me was the inspiration that
someone truly cared about the way I either I played
the game or the way that he wanted to play
the game.
Speaker 3 (30:12):
He wanted to be.
Speaker 6 (30:13):
The best basketball player that he could be, and as
I got to know him, I wanted to be.
Speaker 3 (30:22):
The best big brother that I could be.
Speaker 6 (30:33):
To do that, you had to put up with the aggravation,
the late night calls, or the dumb questions I took
great pride as I got to know Kobe Bryant that
he was just trying to be a better person, a
(30:55):
better basketball player. We talked about business, we talked about family,
we talked about everything, and he was just trying to
be a better person. Now he's got me, I don't
(31:20):
have to look at another crime meme for the next
I told my wife I wasn't going to do this
because I didn't want to see that for the next
three or four years. That is what Kobe Bryant does
to me. I'm pretty sure if Vanessa and his friends
(31:41):
all can say the same thing. He knows how to
get to you in a way that affects you personally,
even though if he's being a painting but he always
ever has sense of love for him and the way
that he can bring out the best in you, And
he did that for me. I remember, maybe a couple
(32:03):
of months ago, he sends me a text and he said,
I'm trying to teach my daughter.
Speaker 3 (32:12):
Some moods.
Speaker 6 (32:15):
And I don't know what I was thinking or what
I was working on, But what were you thinking about
when you were trying to as you were growing up,
trying to work on your moods. I said what age?
He says twelve. I said twelve. I was trying to
(32:38):
play baseball. He sends me a text back saying, laughing
my ass off, And this is at two o'clock in
the morning. But the thing about him was we could
talk about anything that relate to basketball, but we can
(33:01):
talk about anything that related to life. And we, as
we grew up in life, rarely have friends that we
can have conversations like that. Well, it's even rare when
you can grow up against adversaries and have conversations like that.
I went and saw Phil Jackson in nineteen ninety nine
(33:24):
and maybe two thousand, I don't know when Phil was
here in LA And I walk in and Kobe's sitting
there and the first thing, I'm in a suit. First
thing Kobe said, did you bring your shoes? No, I
wasn't thinking about playing. But his attitude to compete and
(33:48):
play against someone he felt like he could enhance and
improve his gamer to me, and that's why I loved
about the kid.
Speaker 3 (33:56):
Absolutely loved about the kid.
Speaker 6 (33:59):
No matter where he saw me, it was a challenge
and I admired him because his passion.
Speaker 3 (34:06):
You rarely see.
Speaker 6 (34:08):
Someone who's looking and trying to improve each and every day,
and not just in sports, but.
Speaker 3 (34:14):
As a parent, as a husband.
Speaker 6 (34:18):
I am inspired by what he's done and what he
shared with Vanessa, and what he's shared with his kids.
I have a daughter who is thirty who just became
a grandparent, and I have two twins.
Speaker 3 (34:32):
I have twins at six.
Speaker 6 (34:39):
I can't wait to get home, to become a girl
dad and to hug them and to see the love
that then the smiles that they bring to us as parents.
He taught me that just by looking at this tonight,
looking at how he responded and reacted with the people
they actually loved. These are the things that we will
(35:00):
continue to learn from. Kobe Bryant to Vanessa Natalia Bianca Capri,
my wife and our will keep you close in our
hearts and our prayers.
Speaker 3 (35:15):
We will always be here for you always.
Speaker 6 (35:18):
I also want to offer our condolences and support to
all the families affected by this enormous tragedy. Kobe gave
every last ounce of himself to whatever he was doing.
Speaker 3 (35:34):
After basketball.
Speaker 6 (35:35):
He showed a creative side to himself that I didn't
think any of us knew he had. In retirement, he
seemed so happy, he found new passions, and he continued
to get back as a coach in his community. More importantly,
(35:59):
he was amazing, amazing husband who dedicated himself to his
family and who loved.
Speaker 3 (36:07):
His daughters with all his heart.
Speaker 6 (36:11):
Kobe never left anything on the court, and I think
that's what he would want for us to do. No
one knows how much time we have. That's why we
must live in the moment. We must enjoy the moment.
(36:32):
We must reach and see and spend as much time
as we can with our families and friends and the
people that we absolutely love. To live in the moment
means to enjoy each and everyone that we come in
contact with.
Speaker 3 (36:50):
When Kobe Bryant died, a piece of me.
Speaker 6 (36:52):
Died, And as I look at this arena and across
the globe, a piece of you die. Well, else you
wouldn't be here. Those are the memories that we have
to live with and we learn from. I promise you,
from this day forward, I will live with the memories
(37:13):
of knowing that I had a little brother that I
tried to help in everywhere I could.
Speaker 3 (37:20):
Please, Rest in peace, a little Bah.
Speaker 1 (37:25):
And you are listening to Michael Jordan tearing up and
he is not the kind of guy who cries in public, folks.
And it happened several times as he went from sort
of a beanvel speech to just getting right back into
it about that special relationship be shared and just not
wanting to cry in front of a bunch of people.
I can't wait to come home to be a girl dad,
(37:46):
And that inspired Kobe's life, inspired Jordan to do that.
Kobe Bryant's life memorialized, eulogized on our American stories,
This is Lee Habib and this is our American Stories,
the show where America is the star and the American people.
Up next, you're going to be hearing stories about the
late great Kobe Bryant. He died in a tragic helicopter
crash along with his daughter, and we're sharing with you
eulogies from his memorial service in February of twenty twenty.
(00:33):
He broke all kinds of records, third in the history
of the NBA in scoring until Lebron James passed him.
Also five NBA championships. Very few players have managed that. Also,
there's his fall from grace, real life problems with his
marriage on top of that, very public problems, and his
eventual redemption. We're going to share with you some of
(00:55):
the eulogies from that day of his memorial service back
in twenty twenty. First up is Sabrina and Unescu and
she was at the time a star player at the
University of Oregon. She ended up becoming a mentor to
Kobe's daughter Gianna otherwise known as Jiji. And Bryant, well,
he was Sabrina's mentor. Let's take a listen to Sabrina
(01:16):
and Unescu.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
Growing up, I only knew one way to play the
game of basketball, fierce, with obsessive focus. I was unapologetically competitive.
I wanted to be the best. I love the work
even when it was hard, especially if it was hard.
I knew I was different, that my drive was different.
I grew up watching Kobe Bryant game after game, ring
(01:39):
after ring, living his greatness without apology. I wanted to
be just like him, to love every part of the competition,
to be the first to show up, in the last
to leave, to love the grind, to be your best
when you don't feel your best, and make other people
around you the best version of themselves. And to wake
up and do it again the next day. That's what
(02:00):
I did, wake up, grind and get better. A year ago,
my team Oregon was playing at usc The morning of
the game, our coaches told us that there was a
surprise for the day. I was thinking Nike sent us
some new shoes or swag or something. Kobe walks in
with his daughter, Gianna and two of her teammates. They
sat courtside while my jaw sat dropped, and that was
(02:23):
the first.
Speaker 3 (02:23):
Time I met Kobe.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
Kobe, Gigi and her teammates came into the locker room
after the game. He congratulated us on the wind, but said,
and I'll never forget. Don't shoot yourselves in the foot.
He met, don't settle. The national championship wasn't far and
our goal was to win it all. I remember Gigi
excited and smiling in the locker room. I'd always watch
a ton of film of her playing basketball. She had
(02:48):
a fade away better than mine. I asked her where
she wanted to play ball in college, and she said Yukon.
She had the will and determination to be able to
play wherever she wanted. She and her teammates hung out
with us for a while, starstrucked in a little shy,
but always observing whichever school she would come to choose.
It didn't matter if I represented the present of the
(03:09):
women's game. Gigi was the future, and Kobe knew it.
So we decided to build the future together. I worked
out twice with Gigi over the summer. I'd gone down
to help Kobe coach his team. Gigi had so much
of her dad's skill set. You could tell the amount
of hours they spent in the gym practicing her moves.
She smiled all the time, but when it was game time,
(03:30):
she was ready to kill. I remember one time someone
grabbed her jersey and she sort of just knocked him
down and then stepped right over him. Me and Kobe
looked at each other, smiling, and he goes, I don't
know where she learned that from. I laughed and said,
I do. You can't teach that, and definitely not at
her age. Kobe was right, she had it. She always
(03:51):
wanted to learn to go to every game she could college, NBA, WNBA.
Kobe was helping worth that because he saw it in her,
just like he saw in me. His vision for others
is always bigger than what they imagine for themselves. His
vision for me was way bigger than my own. More importantly,
he didn't just show up in my life and leave.
Speaker 3 (04:11):
He stayed.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
We kept in touch, always texting, calls, game visits. I'd
drop a triple double and have a text from him,
A noble triple double I see with a fleximoji. Another game,
another text, YO, beast mode or easy money. He taught
me his step back. He told me that if I
could bring that to my game, it'd be over Fanny
Defender trying to guard me. He was giving me the
(04:35):
blueprint he was given Gigi the same blueprint. He made
it so that the outsiders who at worked everyone else,
who were driven to be just a little bit different
every single day, to make those around them, behind them
and above them a little bit better every single day.
I wanted to be a part of the generation that
changed basketball for Gigi and her teammates were being born
(04:55):
female didn't mean being born behind where greatness wasn't divided
by j You have too much to give to say silent.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
That's what he.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
Lived through Gigi, through me, through his investment in women's basketball.
That was his next great act. A girl dad. Basketball
in many ways was just a metaphor. I still text
them even though he's not here. The last one I
sent him said, I miss you. May you rest in peace,
my dear friend. The texts go through, but no response.
(05:25):
Sometimes I find myself still waiting. It's so strange to
describe him or Gigi in the past tense. You don't
get used to that. The week after the accident, I
was in Colorado. I had a game, and like I
do before every game, I prayed. This time I was
thinking about Kobe and Gigi. His voice is still in
my head, even if his body is not on this earth,
(05:46):
And all I wanted was a sign that in some
way he still heard me too. I looked off into
the sky and there it was a beautiful golden sunset,
the boldest yellow lakers yellow, and further in the distance,
a helico. There was my sign that he will forever
be with me. The last line from one of his books,
(06:08):
walk until the darkness is a memory, and you become
the sun on the next traveler's horizon. I ask each
of you, every girl, dad, every human here with a voice,
a platform and a heart, to not let his son
set shine for us, for our sport, where he once
did invest in us with the same passion and drive
and respect and love as he did his own daughter.
(06:31):
In the end, she was a sun just starting to rise,
and God did she glow. May their light forever shine.
Kobe and Gigi. I love you forever, Thank you.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
And you've been listening to Sabrina ian Escu, And what
a story she tells. She says, I wake up, I grind,
I get better. That might as well have been Kobe
Bryant's life motto too. And my goodness. His last and
ultimate role was sabrine and nailed. He was a girl.
Dad is next great act basketball a mere metaphor when
(07:05):
we come back more of the remarkable eulogies delivered on
Kobe Bryant's behalf Here on Our American Stories, liehbib here,
the host of our American Stories. Every day on this show,
we're bringing inspiring stories from across this great country, stories
(07:27):
from our big cities and small towns. But we truly
can't do the show without you. Our stories are free
to listen to, but they're not free to make. If
you love what you hear, go to Ouramerican Stories dot
com and click the donate button. Give a little, give
a lot. Go to Ouramerican Stories dot com and give.
(08:09):
And we returned to our American Stories and our look
back at basketball legend Kobe Bryant's memorial service. And often
there's no better way to get to know who a
person was by the nature and quality of the eulogies
delivered on their behalf. Earlier, we heard from a great
college ballplayer, Sabrina Yunescu, and this next speaker is another
(08:30):
powerful one who was a remarkable player as well. Dianna Trazi,
by the way, a three time NCAA and w NBA champion.
Speaker 4 (08:39):
In nineteen ninety six, I was a lanky, awkward freshman
in high school, obsessively shooting night after night in my driveway.
On the nights the Lakers played, I would miss a
second of the game. Every time out, every commercial, I
run to the front yard to imitate my favorite Laker, Kobe.
(09:07):
On a few lucky occasions, my dad would come home
from work. He was a metal sheet worker in Los Angeles,
and he'd come home.
Speaker 3 (09:15):
With Laker tickets.
Speaker 4 (09:20):
Watching Kobe play at the Great Western Form as a
rookie made this little girl believe she could be a
Laker one day. It was like getting to know myself
every single day. He made it okay to play with
an edge that borderlined crazy early on St.
Speaker 3 (09:38):
Mama.
Speaker 4 (09:38):
Mentality was in full effect. Years later, when I spent
time with Kobe at the two thousand and eight Olympics,
I learned firsthand that it just wasn't limited to the
basketball court. His competitive fire ran through his veins, just
like many of us today. Every single workout I end
(10:03):
the same way with the Kobe game winner. Three hard
dribbles going right, left foot plant, pivot, swing right, leg through, elevate, square.
Speaker 3 (10:18):
Up, follow through, five in a row, and I got
to go home.
Speaker 4 (10:27):
It's that exact same shot that won us a championship
in Phoenix in twenty fourteen. Kobe's willingness to do the
hard work and make the sacrifice every single day inspired
me and resonated with the city of Los Angeles. We
struggled together, we grew together, we celebrated victories together. The
(10:54):
same passion we all recognized in Kobe obviously inherited. Her
skill was undeniable at an early age. I mean, who
has a turnaray fadeaway jumper at eleven? Lebron barely got
it today, But it was her curiosity about the game
(11:22):
that was pushing her to pick up the basketball every
single day. Gigi was in the midst of the best
times as a basketball player's career. No responsibilities, no expectations,
just basketball with your best friends. Every weekend was a
new adventure, an opportunity to learn how to work and
grow together as a unit. As a young kid, there's
(11:46):
nothing you looked forward to more than long hut summer
days in the gym with your homies. The same way
Kobe inspired a generation of basketball players. Gigian turned Kobe's
interest in coaching and teaching the game. I'm sure I'm
at the only one who received the text from Kobe
asking what drills they were doing when they were thirteen. GG,
in many ways represents the future of women's basketball, a
(12:11):
future where a young woman aspires to play in the
WNBA the same way I wanted to be a Laker.
GG already had goals to play for Yukon that inhself
showed her fearless mentality. She represents a time where a
young girl doesn't need permission to play. Her skill would
(12:31):
command respect. The last time I saw Gigi, the mamas
were in Phoenix for a big AU tournament. Kobe brought
them to the locker room to watch practice. I always
remember the look on Gig's face. It was a look
of excitement, a look of belonging, a look of fierce determination.
(12:56):
As a daughter, a sister, wife and mother. There we
embrace Vanessa, Natalia Bianca and Capri. We promised to carry
Gigi's legacy. Kobe Los Angeles, Los Angeles, Nukam.
Speaker 3 (13:17):
When Mucho.
Speaker 1 (13:24):
And you were listening to Diana Tarasi and that Yukon
Star and Yukon well the dominant NCAA power in women's
college basketball. And that's where Kobe's daughter wanted to go.
And Kobe well, he told her the sky is the limit,
and he got her to know that program, and got
her to know the coach of that program, the great
(13:45):
Geno Ariama. And what what interested Gino is that Kobe
Bryant had talked to him often, not about how to
become a great player. That Kobe was now in a
new role as a dad and as a husband and father,
and that was the role of coach. And is anyone
who's ever watched Kobe knows or knows about him, knows
(14:06):
he wasn't always the most coachable athlete. Let's hear Gino.
Speaker 5 (14:11):
How ironic that he would talk to me about coaching.
The uncoachable one wants to talk about coaching. Probably the
most uncoachable player in the NBA during his career wants
to know about coaching. And I wanted to know why
he said, I'm coaching my daughter's team. I said, oh
my god, that poor kid. So when I watched highlights
(14:38):
of her playing and on about the third or fourth
time she touched the ball, Jianna passed it when she
was open. I thought, she's not listening to her father.
(15:01):
So he would call and say, what kind of defensive
drills should I do? We have practice tonight, We're going
to work on defense. What do you think is the
most important thing in teaching?
Speaker 6 (15:09):
Man?
Speaker 5 (15:10):
The man further proof he never listened to one word
any of his coaches told him. So I try to
explain them, I said, Kobe, they're thirteen years old. I
think you ought to just say, hey, you know, see
the kid with the ball, try not to let her
go by you, and see if you're guarding the other
guys hate see the kid with the ball over there,
don't let her throw the ball to your guy. Keep
(15:31):
it kind of simple, you know. He said, No, I
want to know, like, what are the rotations when they drive?
I said, come on, come on, come on. So these
are the conversations that we have, both as basketball people
and as dads who have ever coached their kids. If
you've ever been in that situation, like a lot of
(15:53):
people here in this room probably have been. And I
remember when Gigi came, as you saw on that video,
she came to the very first game that she came to,
and she came into the locker room and here she is,
and the look on her face, the smile, the way
(16:16):
her eyes just took everything in, how excited she was
to be around in.
Speaker 3 (16:23):
Her mind, royalty.
Speaker 5 (16:25):
It's ironic her father's royalty, and she's excited to be
around royalty that looks just like what she wants to be.
And the most impressive thing about that point in time
was how Kobe stepped as far back as he could
so anyone taking pictures, anyone there would not know that
(16:48):
this was Kobe Bryan's daughter. This was her moment, This
is where her time to shine. This was her time
to experience all the things that he's experienced his whole life.
He was being dad, he wasn't being Kobe Bryant, and
he was allowing gg to be gg, not Kobe Bryant's daughter.
(17:11):
In today's day and age, that's a hell of a
thing for parents to be able to do.
Speaker 1 (17:17):
More Kobe Bryant's stories. We're hearing some of the eulogies.
It was a remarkable memorial service in twenty twenty. More
Kobe Bryant's stories when we return here on our American stories,
(18:13):
and we returned to our American stories and our look
back at Kobe Bryant's memorial service. And these stories, boy,
they're worth replaying, repeating, and retelling. As most people know
the basketball accolades, they don't know the life he lived
and how he redeemed himself after some terrible, terrible missteps
(18:34):
with his wife and his family. You've heard a lot
about fatherhood over this broadcast. You're about to hear a
little bit about Kobe the husband. Up next is Kobe's widow,
Vanessa Bryant.
Speaker 7 (18:46):
He isn't going to be here to drop Bianca Capri
off at pre k or kindergarten. He isn't going to
be here to tell me to get a grip V
when we have to leave the kindergarten classroom, or show
up to our daughter's doctor's visits for my own moral support.
He isn't going to be able to walk our girls
down the aisle or spin me around on the dance
(19:08):
floor while singing p YT to me. But I want
my daughters to know and remember the amazing person husband
and father. He was the kind of man that wanted
to teach the future generations to be better and keep
them from making his own mistakes. He always liked working
and doing projects to improve kids' lives. He taught us
(19:30):
all valuable lessons about life and sports through his NBA career,
his books, his show Detail, and his Punies podcast series,
and were so thankful he let those lessons and stories
behind for us. He was thoughtful and wrote the best
love letters and cards. And Gigi had his wonderful ability
to express her feelings into paper and make you feel
(19:53):
her love through her words. She was thoughtful like him.
They were so easy to love. Everyone naturally gravitated towards them.
They were funny, happy, silly, and they loved life. They
were so full of joy and adventure. God knew they
(20:15):
couldn't be on this earth without each other. He had
to bring them home to Heaven together. Babe, you take
care of our Chi Chi and I got Nanny Baby
and Coco. We're still the best team. We love and
(20:39):
miss you Boo Boo and Chee Chee. May you both
rest in peace and have fun in heaven until we
meet again one day. We love you both and miss
you forever and always.
Speaker 1 (20:55):
Mommy, And there was almost nothing to say, and what
class and what beauty. And we have to remember there
was a time in Kobe's life where he hit bottom.
There were sexual assault charges, a lot of people, probably
in her years, saying dump him, what did he do?
The charges were dropped and Kobe had to rehabilitate himself,
(21:18):
not just in front of a few people, but the
whole world. And his wife hung in there and they
had a life together. There was forgiveness, and there was
clearly redemption. He came to the NBA when he was
seventeen years old. His parents had to sign his contract.
He wasn't old enough, came right out of high school.
(21:38):
And by the way, part of that redemption was playing
with the Redeemed Team under Mike Shryzhewsky, which I wrote
about in a piece in Newsweek. He had been a
young guy, got a lot of attention, but ultimately became
the villain in his own story. He'd run Shaquille O'Neill
off the team, He'd run Phil Jackson off the team,
(21:58):
and then he'd almost run his own own family into
the ground. But to watch a man come back and
fix it and heal it and grow and get better,
we all watch this. And he once wrote about this,
actually because he was a remarkable writer, and here's what
he wrote about it as he was retiring. No hero
is perfect and no villain is completely void of heroic intentions.
Speaker 3 (22:22):
We all live.
Speaker 1 (22:24):
As both, he wrote on his website on the day
he retired. What sets the good ones apart is how
they use their inner villain to create something epic and beautiful.
It's living as a hero villain. The hero villain channels
fear of rejection, anger, self doubt and turns it all
into strength and courage and power and determination and love.
(22:49):
And those are words of a guy who also, in
his last act here on this earth, took communion with
his daughter at his local Catholic church and prayed with
her before stepping on that helicopter. Up next to the
memorial service was Rob Polenka, not only Kobe's agent for
his entire career, but a close personal friend, vacation together
(23:11):
mentor pal, and in the end, a guy, well, two
guys who loved each other. He's now the general manager
of the Los Angeles Lakers. And here is Rob Polenka
on Kobe the husband.
Speaker 8 (23:25):
When God made Kobe, the next great act of his
was to fashion Vanessa. I know this because they are
matched perfectly together, and I've had a front row seat
to being witness to their love for twenty years. I
remember all the way back to their wedding day in
two thousand and one.
Speaker 3 (23:40):
In typical Kobe.
Speaker 8 (23:41):
Fashion, he wanted to master every detail of that day
to reflect his love for Vanessa. One of the things
he was most excited about was carrying Vanessa in his
arms over the threshold of their home as a husband
and wife for the first time. Vanessa brought out Kobe's
romantic side like nobody else in the world could. He
loved to celebrate holidays with her, her Birthday, anniversary, and
(24:05):
especially Valentine's Day. Often he would call me to brainstorm
his incredible ideas for special gifts and romantic occasions with her.
He even loved to write poems and letters to her
and make them into beautiful keepsake books. Simply put, Kobe's
love for Vanessa was the energy for his life. One
particular story captures the depth of Kobe's love for Vanessa.
(24:28):
There was a stretch of days when work travel was
causing Kobe to be away from Vanessa for longer than
he wanted. He called me to explain how hard this
stretch was for him. One night on the phone, Kobe
noticed there was a grand piano in the hotel suite
he was staying in. He set it sat by a
tall window under the moonlit sky.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
During one of.
Speaker 8 (24:49):
Our calls, he shared an idea with me. He said
he hadn't been sleeping much at night because he was
missing me and the.
Speaker 3 (24:56):
Girl so much while he was away.
Speaker 8 (24:59):
He wanted to live in his love for Vanessa, so
at night, under the moonlit sky, he vowed to teach
himself by ear to play the first movement of Beethoven's
Moonlit Sonata. When he told me this, I thought there's
no way. I knew he wasn't a trained musician and
(25:20):
that was a really difficult piece of music to play.
But Kobe's passion and love for Vanessa, combined with the
patience and focus that only the Black Mamba has, made
this seemingly impossible goal a reality. That next morning, Kobe
called and played me the first few measures the next
morning more by the end of the week, he had
(25:42):
the entire piece mastered, and he played it for me
over the phone without a mistake. In my heart, I
knew that moment was one of Kobe's grandest feats for
his deepest love. Kobe had mastered one of the greatest
piano movements ever written as a symbol of one of
the most beautiful loves.
Speaker 3 (25:59):
The world has ever seen.
Speaker 8 (26:02):
To close, I will say this, just as the sun
lights the moon to guide us through the night, Kobe
and GG will continue to shine light in all of us.
But unlike the sun, Kobe and Gg's fuel will never
ever burn out because their light is eternal. Yes, the
axis of our world shifted that frightful morning a few
(26:24):
weeks back, but with Kobe and Gigi's moonlight, we will
never have to live in the darkness of night again.
We will all journey on until one day we will
be in heaven together again, and this time it will
be forever. I love you, dear Kobe and precious Gig.
Speaker 1 (26:47):
And you listen to both Vanessa Bryant, Kobe's wife, and
Rob Polenka, his agent and ultimately the general manager of
the Los Angeles Lakers, and imagine getting the call not
about salary, not about trades. Imagine calling your agent talking
to him about writing or learning a piece of music
(27:09):
you want to play for the wife you miss, not
a typical conversation with an agent. I would submit, I'm
sure Rob would agree. More stories to come up next,
Michael Jordan to talk about his friend Kobe Bryant here
on our American Stories. And we returned to our American
(27:39):
stories and the final portion of our look back at
Kobe Bryant's memorial service, and we have saved the best
for a last. In nineteen ninety six, Michael Jordan faced
an eighteen year old Kobe Bryant on the court for
the very first time. Midway through the game, while playing,
Kobe asked him for some tips on his jump shot.
Kobe scored thirty three against his wayt idle. That night,
(28:01):
Jordan scored thirty six and won the game. That they
developed a sort of father son relationship over time, which
then developed into a brotherly one. Here's Michael Jordan.
Speaker 6 (28:13):
You know all of us have brothers and sisters. For
whatever reason, I always tend to get in your stuff,
your closet, your shoes, everything. It was a nuisance, if
I can say that word. But that nuisance turned into
love over a period of time, just because the admiration
(28:39):
that they had for you as big brothers of big sisters.
Speaker 3 (28:44):
The questions.
Speaker 6 (28:46):
They're wanting to know every little detail about life that
they were about them. Barker, he used to call me,
text me eleven thirty two thirty three o'clock in the
morning talking about post up moves, footwork, and sometimes the triangle.
(29:14):
At first it was an aggravation, but then it turned
into a certain passion.
Speaker 3 (29:27):
This kid had passion like you would never know. It's
an amazing thing about passion.
Speaker 6 (29:35):
If you love something, if you have a strong passion
for something, you would go to the extreme to try
to understand or try to get it. Either ice cream, cokes, hamburgers,
whatever you have a love for you have to walk,
(29:55):
you would go get it.
Speaker 3 (29:56):
If you have to beg some on it, you would
go get it.
Speaker 6 (30:00):
What Kobe Bryant was to me was the inspiration that
someone truly cared about the way I either I played
the game or the way that he wanted to play
the game.
Speaker 3 (30:12):
He wanted to be.
Speaker 6 (30:13):
The best basketball player that he could be, and as
I got to know him, I wanted to be.
Speaker 3 (30:22):
The best big brother that I could be.
Speaker 6 (30:33):
To do that, you had to put up with the aggravation,
the late night calls, or the dumb questions I took
great pride as I got to know Kobe Bryant that
he was just trying to be a better person, a
(30:55):
better basketball player. We talked about business, we talked about family,
we talked about everything, and he was just trying to
be a better person. Now he's got me, I don't
(31:20):
have to look at another crime meme for the next
I told my wife I wasn't going to do this
because I didn't want to see that for the next
three or four years. That is what Kobe Bryant does
to me. I'm pretty sure if Vanessa and his friends
(31:41):
all can say the same thing. He knows how to
get to you in a way that affects you personally,
even though if he's being a painting but he always
ever has sense of love for him and the way
that he can bring out the best in you, And
he did that for me. I remember, maybe a couple
(32:03):
of months ago, he sends me a text and he said,
I'm trying to teach my daughter.
Speaker 3 (32:12):
Some moods.
Speaker 6 (32:15):
And I don't know what I was thinking or what
I was working on, But what were you thinking about
when you were trying to as you were growing up,
trying to work on your moods. I said what age?
He says twelve. I said twelve. I was trying to
(32:38):
play baseball. He sends me a text back saying, laughing
my ass off, And this is at two o'clock in
the morning. But the thing about him was we could
talk about anything that relate to basketball, but we can
(33:01):
talk about anything that related to life. And we, as
we grew up in life, rarely have friends that we
can have conversations like that. Well, it's even rare when
you can grow up against adversaries and have conversations like that.
I went and saw Phil Jackson in nineteen ninety nine
(33:24):
and maybe two thousand, I don't know when Phil was
here in LA And I walk in and Kobe's sitting
there and the first thing, I'm in a suit. First
thing Kobe said, did you bring your shoes? No, I
wasn't thinking about playing. But his attitude to compete and
(33:48):
play against someone he felt like he could enhance and
improve his gamer to me, and that's why I loved
about the kid.
Speaker 3 (33:56):
Absolutely loved about the kid.
Speaker 6 (33:59):
No matter where he saw me, it was a challenge
and I admired him because his passion.
Speaker 3 (34:06):
You rarely see.
Speaker 6 (34:08):
Someone who's looking and trying to improve each and every day,
and not just in sports, but.
Speaker 3 (34:14):
As a parent, as a husband.
Speaker 6 (34:18):
I am inspired by what he's done and what he
shared with Vanessa, and what he's shared with his kids.
I have a daughter who is thirty who just became
a grandparent, and I have two twins.
Speaker 3 (34:32):
I have twins at six.
Speaker 6 (34:39):
I can't wait to get home, to become a girl
dad and to hug them and to see the love
that then the smiles that they bring to us as parents.
He taught me that just by looking at this tonight,
looking at how he responded and reacted with the people
they actually loved. These are the things that we will
(35:00):
continue to learn from. Kobe Bryant to Vanessa Natalia Bianca Capri,
my wife and our will keep you close in our
hearts and our prayers.
Speaker 3 (35:15):
We will always be here for you always.
Speaker 6 (35:18):
I also want to offer our condolences and support to
all the families affected by this enormous tragedy. Kobe gave
every last ounce of himself to whatever he was doing.
Speaker 3 (35:34):
After basketball.
Speaker 6 (35:35):
He showed a creative side to himself that I didn't
think any of us knew he had. In retirement, he
seemed so happy, he found new passions, and he continued
to get back as a coach in his community. More importantly,
(35:59):
he was amazing, amazing husband who dedicated himself to his
family and who loved.
Speaker 3 (36:07):
His daughters with all his heart.
Speaker 6 (36:11):
Kobe never left anything on the court, and I think
that's what he would want for us to do. No
one knows how much time we have. That's why we
must live in the moment. We must enjoy the moment.
(36:32):
We must reach and see and spend as much time
as we can with our families and friends and the
people that we absolutely love. To live in the moment
means to enjoy each and everyone that we come in
contact with.
Speaker 3 (36:50):
When Kobe Bryant died, a piece of me.
Speaker 6 (36:52):
Died, And as I look at this arena and across
the globe, a piece of you die. Well, else you
wouldn't be here. Those are the memories that we have
to live with and we learn from. I promise you,
from this day forward, I will live with the memories
(37:13):
of knowing that I had a little brother that I
tried to help in everywhere I could.
Speaker 3 (37:20):
Please, Rest in peace, a little Bah.
Speaker 1 (37:25):
And you are listening to Michael Jordan tearing up and
he is not the kind of guy who cries in public, folks.
And it happened several times as he went from sort
of a beanvel speech to just getting right back into
it about that special relationship be shared and just not
wanting to cry in front of a bunch of people.
I can't wait to come home to be a girl dad,
(37:46):
And that inspired Kobe's life, inspired Jordan to do that.
Kobe Bryant's life memorialized, eulogized on our American stories,
Host
Lee Habeeb
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