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January 26 is a day that all Angelenos — and basketball fans throughout the world — will remember.
It’s the day when Kobe Bryant, his daughter, Gianna, and seven others tragically passed away in a helicopter crash in Calabasas.
In remembrance of that day, the California Post sports staff share their memories of the NBA icon, one of the greatest and most competitive basketball players of all time.
Ryan Kostecka | Sports Editor
Growing up in the Bay Area as a fan of the Warriors and Kings, it felt like my personal NBA mission was to hate Kobe Bryant. After all, he made life miserable for the fans by dominating those franchises, especially the Kings. Yet for some reason, none of those heartbreaking memories prevented me from saying “Kobe” every time I shot a wad of paper into a trash can or tossed a baseball into a bucket. It’s rare that a single athlete can transcend multiple generations, yet that’s what Kobe did.
While I’ll never forgive him for my early adolescent years, you can bet my two-year-old son will be raised saying “Kobe” when he tosses socks into the laundry basket.
Ben Bolch | Senior College Reporter
It was a dumb question. Kobe Bryant made sure I knew it.
After he had missed his first eight shots in January 2015 against the Clippers, I asked the Lakers star if he ever reached a point in a game where he would acknowledge it’s an off night and become more of a facilitator.
Bryant eventually spoke, but his reaction delivered the answer. He scoffed, rolled his eyes, and gave me a look like I had asked permission to run over his dog.
He went on to say he didn’t play any differently than he normally did. By then, the message had been received.
Of course, he’s going to keep shooting. He’s Kobe Bryant.
Dylan Hernandez | Senior Sports Reporter
“Although I truly believe this encounter between us was consensual, I recognize now that she did not and does not view this incident the same way I did.”
The words above were part of a statement released by Kobe Bryant after sexual assault charges against him were dropped because his accuser refused to testify against him.
The statement has always come to mind when I’ve been asked to evaluate Bryant’s legacy.
Bryant was unquestionably a great basketball player who left a massive cultural imprint on both this city and the NBA. He and Shaquille O’Neal temporarily transformed Los Angeles from a longstanding Dodgers town to a Lakers town.
His mythical work habits made him worshipped by the generation of basketball players who followed him.
However, the rape accusations against him continue to give me pause. More than two decades after the incident in question, I can’t definitively say what happened in that Colorado hotel room, which is why today, six years after his death, I still don’t know the degree to which Bryant should be celebrated.
Ed Lewis | Senior Sports Reporter
Every athlete in the history of sports has dreamed of putting the perfect punctuation mark on the end of their career, but nobody’s been able to do it quite as perfectly as Bryant did versus the Jazz back in 2016. He hoisted 50 shots, scored 60 points, and had the Staples Center absolutely rocking. The Lakers were able to win, too.
While no one will ever forget his 81-point game, that April tilt will always be my most vivid Bryant memory, because it has to be the most ideal finale of any legend’s time as a pro.
Jack Harris | Dodgers Reporter
As a childhood Phoenix Suns fan, I can’t say I have the fondest memories of Kobe as a player (still stinging from the 2010 Western Conference Finals).
But while working at the LA Times in the wake of his death in 2020, I was tasked to write about his time coaching his daughter’s girls’ basketball team. The stories I heard about Kobe, the coach — a calming, encouraging, and compassionate presence, according to those who knew him then — struck me as an interesting contrast to the intensity he displayed in his playing days. It was one of the many examples of how he continued to impact people even after he retired.
Khobi Price | Lakers Reporter
His 60-point performance in the final game of his career.
After it was clear Father Time caught up to Bryant, evident by his injury-induced decline in play spanning over a couple of seasons after tearing his Achilles in April 2013, it was poetic to see him have a vintage performance in the arena he had countless in. It remains one of the greatest farewell games in NBA history.
Michael Duarte | Senior Sports Reporter
My personal favorite memory with Kobe Bryant is also one of my greatest life memories.
Kobe was my favorite player growing up, and the reason why I wanted to become a storyteller. I wore No. 8 and 24 in all the sports I played, bought all the Kobe Nike shoes, and wanted to write and tell stories about him.
Fortunately for me, I got to cover Kobe’s playing career from 2014 to 16. By this time, the Lakers weren’t a championship contender, and Kobe was in the twilight of his career, battling injuries. I missed the 17 years prior when he apparently was prickly with the media. Instead, for his final three seasons, I got the elder statesman, the guy who brought the media in to talk and share stories, and pass the game on to the next generation.
I knew his final game was going to be a circus, so his penultimate game at Staples Center was a Clippers home game. After his postgame scrum, I walked him to his car. I told him everything I just shared above, and that I would not be a sports journalist or doing what I love as a storyteller without him, and I just wanted to thank him privately and personally.
He stopped walking, put his arm around me, and said, “Michael, you have no idea how much that means to me. Thank you for sharing that with me.” I will never forget that moment for the rest of my life.
RIP Kobe.
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