THERE'S a short video clip on the internet showing Shaquille O’Neal apologizing to Kobe Bryant for doing him wrong all these years, apparently realizing he had no reason to be beefing with his championship teammate.
It shows the Big Diesel making amends face to face after Kobe allowed him to take home the trophy they both won as co-MVPs in an All-star game so he could give the trophy to his son Shareef O’Neil.
Fast forward to the day before Kobe died.
In his Twitter account, Shareef posted a screen capture of Kobe checking up on him with a simple message that goes “ You good fam?”
FAMILY. Apparently, Kobe and Shaq’s families are so close that he thinks of Shaq’s kids as his own and vice versa. Check Shareef’s timeline on Twitter and you will feel the kid’s pain and anguish. It will gut you.
This is a side to Kobe that is not often known.
Most of us basketball fans are familiar with his prowess, accomplishments and his fierce competitive nature, so much so that he would often feud with his own teammates.
His opponents both feared and respected him and no doubt he lived up to his moniker, the Black Mamba.
But towards the later part of his career he mellowed down and became a bit more amiable.
When he retired he took on the role of a father almost with the same single-minded, tunnel-vision approach to the game and he reveled in it.
And that is why I grieve for Kobe--he died performing his role as a father, taking daughter Gigi to her games, coaching and just generally being around his children.
It’s just gut-wrenching thinking how they must have held each other in those last few seconds of their lives knowing death was inevitable.
Kobe was imperfect just like the rest of us. But he truly embodied the concept of living in the moment and not taking anything for granted. He was always willing to take the last shot and even in his dying moments, he was living life to the fullest.
RIP. Kobe Bryant
LAST ROUND. It’s on one of my closest buddies, Siegfred Melleza, who recently celebrated his birthday. Cheers!