Rip- kobe bryant

[the 'stache]

Regarding Kobe, he's simply one of the most dynamic players I've ever seen, and not just in basketball. I remember how good he was at such a young age. It was frightening, really. You saw glimpses of what he'd become even in that first year of 1996-'97. He wasn't playing a lot of minutes, but he did...things...that just made my jaw drop. And 17.6 points per 36 minutes at age 18 is impressive as heck. His explosiveness was absurd. He was so smooth. I think most of us that saw him from the start would say that he exceeded even our wildest expectations.

Remember back when Shaq left the Lakers, how so many chalked his Kobe's rings to Shaq's presence? He won two more without O'Neal. He was great in his own right, and that whole narrative seems downright silly now.

While I can't forget what he was accused of (and I won't talk about it here, as it's inappropriate), I think Kobe genuinely did a lot of good. A hell of a lot. I read about what he did to help the homeless in Los Angeles. The philanthropic foundation he set up with his wife Vanessa. I learned how Kobe would travel back and forth to China to help kids with their education, and encouraged those kids to learn the benefits of teamwork on the court as a metaphor for life. The Kobe Bryant China Fund, and his efforts to promote Chinese culture in America. By all accounts, he was a fantastic father. He mentored countless players coming into the league.

He used helicopters with great frequency as doing so allowed him to spend more time with his girls. That he and his daughter Gianna (and the seven others on board) died en route to one of her basketball games is just...let's just say the universe can sometimes be very cruel.

When he's inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame, I don't think there will be a dry eye in the place, or among those watching from home, myself included.