The beautiful thing about Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant’s Mamba Mentality is that it isn’t strictly about basketball, but can be applied to any facet of life. Anyone can embrace that mindset and one player in another sport who is doing that is Chicago Bears rookie wide receiver Rome Odunze.
Odunze was the ninth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft after an absolutely dominant senior season at the University of Washington in which he was a Consensus All-American after finishing the season with 81 catches for 1,640 yards and 13 touchdowns, helping the Huskies to the CFP National Championship Game.
And now that he is set to begin his NFL career, Odunze knows there is a lot of work to be done to thrive as a professional. And in the latest episode of HBO’s Hard Knocks, the Bears rookie told a pair of teenagers about the work ethic he derived from listening to Kobe, via Brendan Walker of NFL.com:
“[NBA legend] Kobe [ Bryant ] said he never took a shot in a game that he didn’t take a thousand times in practice,” Odunze relayed to the teens. “It’s the same way in football. You should never catch a ball in a game that you ain’t caught a thousand times in practice.”
Odunze would continue on, adding that preparing at the level that the Lakers icon was known for will give him the advantage against the opposition:
“It’s just the preparation, you know what I mean?” he continued. “When you’re doing those things, when you’re doing that hard preparation, keep telling yourself like, ‘Hey, man, I’m out here working!’ The guy across me when it comes game time, he didn’t do that work I was putting in. All those things build confidence.”
The stories of Bryant’s maniacal work ethic are legendary with so many former players and teammates recalling the times where they realized he was truly different. Even though he is only 22 years old, Odunze has been able to take to heart what the Lakers legend was all about, and keep Kobe’s legacy alive.
Hailey Van Lith credits Lakers legend Kobe Bryant’s Mamba Mentality
Another up-and-coming athlete who is channeling Kobe Bryant is women’s college basketball star Hailey Van Lith, who was part of the USA women’s 3×3 basketball team at the 2024 Olympics. After dropping their first three games, Team USA would turn things around, winning five straight and ultimately leaving Paris with a Bronze medal.
Afterwards, Van Lith said she felt that Kobe would be proud of her and her teammates for coming through in that Bronze medal game and refusing to lose. The guard added that they didn’t let those early losses keep them down which is exactly what Kobe’s Mamba Mentality is all about.
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