Kobe Bryant

Basketball player

1978-08-23 – 2020-01-26

American basketball player who spent his 20-year NBA career with the Los Angeles Lakers. He won five NBA championships and was an 18-time All-Star. He also won two Olympic gold medals with the United States national team.

Quotes by Kobe Bryant

Sports are such a great teacher. I think of everything they've taught me: camaraderie, humility, how to resolve differences.
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The important thing is that your teammates have to know you're pulling for them and you really want them to be successful.
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You want me to own a team and deal with these rich, spoiled stubborn athletes, and try to get them to perform? No thank you.
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The only thing I'm afraid of is bees. I don't like bees. I'm allergic to them.
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If you're afraid to fail, then you're probably going to fail.
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In an individual sport, yes, you have to win titles. Baseball's different. But basketball, hockey? One person can control the tempo of a game, can completely alter the momentum of a series. There's a lot of great individual talent.
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I've played with IVs before, during and after games. I've played with a broken hand, a sprained ankle, a torn shoulder, a fractured tooth, a severed lip, and a knee the size of a softball. I don't miss 15 games because of a toe injury that everybody knows wasn't that serious in the first place.
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The topic of leadership is a touchy one. A lot of leaders fail because they don't have the bravery to touch that nerve or strike that chord. Throughout my years, I haven't had that fear.
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At the end of 2003, my game was complete. Shooting, defense, using the dribble, transition, midrange stuff was all there. Then it was about fine-tuning and trying to improve in each area.
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I don't talk trash often, but when I do, I go for the jugular.
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It's disgusting, but my father taught me when your mouth gets dry, just suck the sweat out of your own jersey. There's no bravado to any of it; it's just a disgusting little trick.
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Twitter is great to connect with fans and be transparent. I enjoy that aspect about it. But really, I'm still trying to figure it out.
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I can't relate to lazy people. We don't speak the same language. I don't understand you. I don't want to understand you.
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I'm here. I'm not going anywhere. No matter what the injury - unless it's completely debilitating - I'm going to be the same player I've always been. I'll figure it out. I'll make some tweaks, some changes, but I'm still coming.
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I have self-doubt. I have insecurity. I have fear of failure. I have nights when I show up at the arena and I'm like, 'My back hurts, my feet hurt, my knees hurt. I don't have it. I just want to chill.' We all have self-doubt. You don't deny it, but you also don't capitulate to it. You embrace it.
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The most important thing is to try and inspire people so that they can be great in whatever they want to do.
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Everyone looks at your watch and it represents who you are, your values and your personal style.
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The Black Mamba collection of watches is me: It is my alter ego, so to speak. As I mentioned before, it is sharp, cutting edge and sleek which are characteristics I try to apply when I'm out there on the basketball court.
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Eeew, I'd be a little uncomfortable Googling myself. People sit there - and Google themselves? That's kind of weird.
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I'm extremely willful to win, and I respond to challenges. Scoring titles and stuff like that... it sounds, well, I don't care how it sounds - to me, scoring comes easy. It's not a challenge to me to win the scoring title, because I know I can.
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