Kobe Bryant’s death has impacted not only the NBA world, but his death was also felt across the entire sports and entertainment landscape. And one of the most notable sports figures to pay tribute to the Los Angeles Lakers legend is Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers. When Rodgers, who is from California, heard the news he went to Instagram to talk about what Bryant meant to him.
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“So many of us have our ‘Kobe’ story; an inspirational moment, play, game, or tale of his work ethic, that inspired us to dig deeper, work harder, train longer, or trust ourselves at a new level in a clutch moment,” Rodgers wrote. “That was that #mambamentality and we are all grateful for your inspiration.
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Bryant spent his entire career with the Lakers and he helped the team win five NBA championships from 2000-2009. The Lakers were scheduled to play the Los Angeles Clippers at the Staples Center on Tuesday night, but they decided to postpone the game because of Bryant’s death.
“In consultation with the NBA League office, the game scheduled between the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers for Tuesday, January 28 will be postponed and scheduled for a future date,” the Lakers announced on Monday.
“The Los Angeles Lakers would like to thank all of you for the tremendous outpouring of support and condolences,” the statement went on. “This is a very difficult time for all of us. we continue to support the Bryant family and will share more information as it is available.”
Bryant died on Sunday in a helicopter crash outside the Los Angeles area along with his 13-year old daughter, Gianna, six other passengers and the pilot. The group was flying to Bryant’s Mamba Academy as Gianna was scheduled to play in a basketball tournament.
Rodgers mentioned “Mamba Mentality” in his message to Bryant and that’s exactly what he had. In 2019, Rodgers led the Packers to a 13-3 record and an appearance in the NFC Championship game. Rodgers has been the Packers starting quarterback since 2008 and he led the team to a Super Bowl title in the 2010 season. He also won the MVP award in 2011 and 2014 and he has appeared in four conference title games since 2010. Rodgers is the all-time leader in passer rating, sitting at 102.4.
