Kobe Bryant’s final interview, a chat with Los Angeles Times columnist Arash Markazi, truly illuminated the Lakers icon’s life after the NBA, his love for his family and how he wanted to give back to the world of sport.
The October chat is far from the thought of Bryant’s demise but still stands in a different shadow in hindsight. Not only does it hold a special meaning for Markazi, who drove two hours to interview Bryant in “one of the best decisions” he ever made in his career.
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From the start of the chat, the focus was on the Lakers. But for Bryant, it seemed like while a big chunk of his existence was the NBA, his focus was far from there. An example is a question about why he didn’t attend more Lakers home games.
“I have gone through 20 years of the majority of my career with my kids Natalia and Gianna without being able to have that [home life] consistently,” Bryant told the LA Times.”So for me to make a trip up to the Staples Center, that means I’m missing the opportunity to spend another night with my kids, and I know how fast it goes. Natalia is 16 and Gianna is 13. So that time came and went and so I want to make sure that the days I’m away from them, are days that I absolutely have to. I’d rather just be hanging with them.”
Gianna was clearly a driving force in his post-NBA life, especially her career in basketball and the growing support of girl and women sports. His daughter’s passions seemed to spark a lot of wonder in him according to the interview.
“What I love about Gigi is her curiosity about the game … Even in a very heated situation in a game where it’s very competitive and back and forth, she can detach herself and come over and ask a very specific questions, which is not common,” Bryant told the outlet. “All of our girls can do that, but the part that I think is most exciting is that it’s her curiosity and her ability to think critically in tight situations, (that’s) pretty damn cool.”
Bryant also gives some credit to genetics in terms of Gianna’s talent on the court. If that is what he gave to her, then what she gave back is his dedication to “enhancing” female sports.
“Just trying to enhance the women’s game, not just in basketball but in volleyball and other sports, is extremely important. Anything I can do to help, I’m gonna do,” Bryant said. “If we do it the right way, we’re known more for what we did after than what we did during. I think you can have a lasting impact.”
