MY TRIBUTE to the Black Mamba by sharing some of his words. Rest in Peace Legend!
“The most important thing is to try and inspire people so that they can be great at whatever they want to do.”
“I have self-doubt. I have insecurity. I have a fear of failure. I have nights when I show up at the arena and I’m like, ‘My back hurts, my feet hurt, my knees hurt. I don’t have it. I just want to chill.’ We all have self-doubt. You don’t deny it, but you also don’t capitulate to it. You embrace it.”
“The topic of leadership is a touchy one. A lot of leaders fail because they don’t have the bravery to touch that nerve or strike that chord. Throughout my years, I haven’t had that fear.”
“I’m reflective only in the sense that I learn to move forward. I reflect with a purpose.”
“The important thing is that your teammates have to know you’re pulling for them and you really want them to be successful.”
“My parents are my backbone. Still are. They’re the only group that will support you if you score zero or you score 40.”
“I’ll do whatever it takes to win games, whether it’s sitting on a bench waving a towel, handing a cup of water to a teammate, or hitting the game-winning shot.”
“Everyone looks at your watch and it represents who you are, your values and your personal style.”
“I can’t relate to lazy people. We don’t speak the same language. I don’t understand. I don’t want to understand.”
“I’m here. I’m not going anywhere. No matter what the injury – unless it’s completely debilitating – I’m going to be the same player I’ve always been. I’ll figure it out. I’ll make some tweaks, some changes, but I’m still coming.”
“Can I jump over two or three guys like I used to? No. Am I as fast as I used to be? No, but I still have the fundamentals and smarts. That’s what enables me to still be a dominant player. As a kid growing up, I never skipped steps. I always worked on fundamentals because I know athleticism is fleeting.”
“We all can be masters at our craft, but you have to make a choice. What I mean by that is, there are inherent sacrifices that come along with that. Family time, hanging out with friends, being a great friend, being a great son, nephew, whatever the case may be. There are sacrifices that come along with making that decision.”
“When we are saying this cannot be accomplished, this cannot be done, then we are short-changing ourselves. My brain, cannot process failure. It will not process failure. Because if I have to sit there and face myself and tell myself, ‘You’re a failure,’ I think that is worse, that is almost worse than death.”
“Have a good time. Life is too short to get bogged down and be discouraged. You have to keep moving. You have to keep going. Put one foot in front of the other, smile and just keep on rolling.”
“I don’t want to be the next Michael Jordan, I only want to be Kobe Bryant.”