The surprise of the sports world right now is the Washington Commanders of the NFL. Led by rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels, the Commanders went from 4-13 and the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft all the way to the NFC Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, one win away from the Super Bowl. It’s an unprecedented franchise turnaround led by a Southern California kid with ties to Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant.
Daniels wore cleats that were a tribute to Bryant last week, showing his respect to the late Lakers legend. Daniels was born in Fontana and raised in San Bernardino, playing at Cajon High School there and not playing football outside of Southern California until college in 2019.
That means he grew up watching the back half of Bryant’s career, and he remembers it well. He spoke about his connection to Bryant and what inspires him about the late legend:
“Kobe, my favorite athlete of all time. Especially growing up in Southern California, watching the Lakers, watching Kobe. That’s kind of where the inspiration comes from. And just growing up seeing that. Growing up, you kind of just fall in love with his game and who he is. And then as I got older, you kind of fall in love with his mindset and everything like that. How he approaches the game. He never cheated the game, he took it serious and he gave it his all every time he was on the court.”
Add Daniels to a long and ever-growing list of athletes in any sport that grew up idolizing Kobe and was inspired by him. It’s not a surprise given that he’s a SoCal kid, and it’s also not surprising given the way he approaches the game.
Through his rookie season, Daniels has already made a name for himself with his abilities in crunch time, always making the right play and the perfect time to help his team win. His clutch factor has been off the charts in his first year, and it’s anticipated that he’ll only grow from here.
Lakers’ LeBron James inspired by Ohio State football
While Jayden Daniels gets inspiration from the late, great Kobe Bryant, LeBron James — another player who adopts Bryant’s Mamba Mentality — has recently gotten inspiration from another source.
LeBron was in attendance to watch the Ohio State Buckeyes win the College Football Playoff and cement themselves as national champions, and he said he was inspired by being able to see that.
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