2019-2020 NBA Season Thread Basketball • Page 507

i like to think giannis got his mean mug from kobe

 

sheesh you’re both sidesing this? Please don’t, I was afraid this would happen. Kobe did rape a woman and then his lawyer went on a damaging smear campaign that was picked up by the media and it was horrific for the victim. How that case was handled continues to be extremely damaging for survivors. That is part of his legacy, there’s nothing gained by rewriting that history.

 

An absolute legend. I cannot believe this happened. His second act was just getting started. RIP to my sports idol Kobe Bryant.

 

“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. After months of reviewing discovery, listening to her attorney, and even her testimony in person, I now understand how she feels that she did not consent to this encounter.” -Kobe Bryant

We can’t minimize or dismiss the truth because we’re heartbroken. Bryant was many things, a singular basketball talent, a loving husband and father, an icon who influenced every single player in the NBA right now. He also raped a woman, and while I understand the instinct to remember the positive and the love, we have to find a way to remember and talk about him and his legacy without signaling that his rape didn’t matter, or that it didn’t happen. It’s going to be a hard time for the survivor, and potentially for many other survivors as the tributes continue to come and as many will assuredly erase what happened.

I don’t hold the reactions of many, which have not touched on the sexual assault, against anyone. What happened is fresh and emotions are raw, I don’t know the “right” way to react and I’m not sure there is one. The wrong way, though, would be to rewrite or ignore the truth.

 

Jerry West saying yesterday was the worst day of his life. God dammit.

 

anybody got a link to the 81 point game? it’s on YouTube but the quality is shit and I wanna watch it today

 

This is the game and moment I remember most.

 

I grew up a huge, huge Lakers fan because my dad loved Phil Jackson having grown up in Chicago during the Jordan days. I stopped actively watching the NBA a while ago but those championship runs with Gasol and Odom are memories I will always have.

Probably my favorite:

 

I don't remember which game it was specifically, but this memory always sticks out to me when I think about Kobe. I kind of fell out of basketball during the mid-late 2000's, and I want to say one of the first games I watched getting back into it was like the '11-12 playoffs and I remember every time he'd throw up the ugliest looking shot from the craziest angles thinking no way in hell this goes in and it almost always somehow did and that's just who he was (on the court).

Rest easy Kobe & Gianna, and the other 7 victims.

 

As a Suns fan, this was so heartbreaking. The gigantic missed call by the refs on the play leading to the jump ball and then Kobe's shot. Ugh.

 

So I’m an air traffic controller. And imo the actions the helicopter pilot took are negligent.

Special VFR is dumb as fuck. File or pick up an IFR clearance. Let ATC do their gd job. Let them assign a safe altitude and vector you to shoot an approach. This was and should have been avoided entirely.

holding for 15 mins outside of Burbank? Just to transition to Camarillo and hold again? It poor conditions because you don’t have priority over IFR departures? Absolutely insanity.

 

so terrible man.

 

Fuck fuck fuck. Seeing all those young faces is fucking me up. Still can’t believe this shit.

 

ugh

 

Best moment for me was seeing his final game in Houston. Him and James trading baskets towards the end was amazing.

 

All last week I was having a hard time because I really wanted to think about something other than Trump or the coronavirus. This is not what I meant.

now would probably be a good time to watch his short film, but I imagine I’ll have a hard time keeping it together.

 

This still feels unbelievable, seeing pictures and videos everywhere looking more or less the same as he always did from when I was a kid until yesterday, iconic moments that I can vividly remember happening in real time, and then it hits me again how permanent this is.

I spent pretty much my entire life hating Kobe's guts and all things Lakers, literally the sight of a Laker uniform triggers some very visceral emotions in me to this day, but there's no question I wouldn't be anywhere near the basketball fan I am today if it weren't for Kobe. Hell, really tracing it back I probably wouldn't have the career I have today without Kobe. He gave me and everyone else in Sacramento a singular enemy, he and Shaq were the Goliath to our David and that made us rally around and love our team, and by extension the sport, that much more.

99-04 were my formative years as a sports fan and as a person and to say Kobe ripping my heart out repeatedly was a catalyst in who I became would be a massive understatement. I still watch every Kings game even though we suck ass because of him, I still make a point to get to Sacramento for a game every chance I can because of him, and I still have a fatalist sense of dread always expecting the worst outcome for my team because his greatness instilled that in me.

I hated that guy but damn if he didn't have a huge impact on my life. RIP Mamba

 

Man, this all feels so strange. There was such a weird air to all the games yesterday, but I can't help but think the string of incredible performances we saw (Dame, Trae, Beal, Booker, Siakam just to name a few) were in his honor. All the tributes like the 24 and 8 second violations had me balling up.

I've always had complicated feeling about the man. His talent on court and impact on the game cannot be denied. But I can't ignore the rape allegations either. It's part of his legacy, however ugly that sounds. Still, he seemed to be someone who at least tried to atone for his past mistakes. His denouncing of a fan on twitter using a gay slur seemed like a small moment, but I thought it sent a powerful message. It was genuinely great how dedicated of a father he was and how he advocated for women's sports.

This loss is hitting me way harder than I expected. Probably haven't been this bummed out about a celebrity death since Carrie Fisher. It's even more tragic that his daughter and other families were with him. I'll never forget him coming in clutch for Team USA or just how crazy and storybook his final game was along with the hundreds of other highlights he had throughout his career. His post-basketball life was fascinating to follow as well. It seems like his life was just getting started in a way. This is going to hang like a shadow over the rest of the season. Unbelievably tragic.

 

the big kobe memory for me was watching the 00-01 finals and seeing them bust philly and being mad the bucks weren’t in that series and didn’t also get busted

 

As a huge Laker and Kobe Bryant fan, it still doesn't feel real. Losing him and Gianna, as well as all those other wonderful people...it's just truly heartbreaking. This is the most impactful celebrity/sport death of my lifetime. Kobe had a huge affect on me falling in love with the game of basketball. I can't forget about the victim of his sexual assault case and how sad that is, but he's done so much since then to show he was a good human being who cared about people and life in general. As a dad, I hope I can be as good to my kids as he was to his. I will always remember him fondly for all his basketball accomplishments, but just wish I could have seen the rest of his life play out. Life isn't fair sometimes. Enjoy your loved ones, everybody. Life is too fucking short.

 

Also, they played this song during Kobe's last game on Sportsnet and I can't stop playing it.