Kobe Bryant remains at peace with his decision to walk away from the game of basketball after 20 years in the NBA. The Los Angeles Lakers icon was at an event to unveil his first signature shoe since retiring and was asked about whether he missing the game, via ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne:
“Not even a little bit,” Bryant said Tuesday morning at the launch of his latest signature Nike shoe, the “Kobe A.D.”
Bryant finds it a bit weird that he doesn’t miss the game that he obsessed over the majority of his life, but now claims he can enjoy watching rather than playing, via Shelburne:
“It’s strange to think a couple years ago, to be in this emotional space would be unfathomable. But I mean not even a smidge, which I’m very thankful for, because it’s made my transition seamless and I can really just watch and just enjoy the games.”
Bryant’s not even slightly missing the game is strange, to say the least. Kobe’s world has been ruled by the game of basketball with some believing he was quite literally crazy about his obsession for perfection. Now he’s clearly content without the nightly competition or relentlessly working toward achieving historic milestones in the NBA while wearing the purple and gold, and will continue to strive for success in the next stage in his life off the court.
Without Kobe to lean on in the first four games of the 2016-17 NBA season, the Lakers have fallen to a 1-3 record. Luke Walton may have already changed the culture of this franchise in Los Angeles, but the growing pains continue to be felt by the team filled with promising young talent.
Hopefully, for the sake of the Lakers franchise and Bryant’s new career path, things will come together over the course of the next year or so. The Lakers have a long way to go to right ship while Kobe has a lot to learn to be successful in his new endeavor.
