Kobe Bryant’s leadership in numbers
This short piece is a tribute to a true leader on and off the court. As a NBA fan there are numerous aspects to Kobe’s career both regarding his stats on the court but also his impact off the court and post retirement where he led by example and inspired many.
Capturing everything in one post is overwhelming, but I’ve tried to summarize his impact in numbers and key events that was defining for not only the sports ecosystem but countless other areas.
“For 20 seasons, Kobe showed us what is possible when remarkable talent blends with an absolute devotion to winning,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement Sunday. “He was generous with the wisdom he acquired and saw it as his mission to share with future generations of players.”
When drafted in 1996 as pick 13, there was no strong indicators that Kobe Bryant would be the superstar defining the Lakers dynasty and DNA for over two decades — let alone his impact on other industries and for people who did not even follow basketball. He started wearing #8 for the first half of his career (1996–2006) moving onto #24 (2006–2016) the second part of his career. He had an amazing run with both numbers that are now retired by the Lakers.
I’m certainly speaking on behalf of many people when I say that #8 and #24 is associated with winner mentality and holistic leadership approach both on and off the court. Kobe was a true leader who led by example both on and off the court
#mambamentality: means to be able to constantly try to be the best version of yourself… Inspired by the code name for a deadly assassin in Quentin Tarantino’s 2003 movie “Kill Bill,” Bryant adopted the nickname #blackmamba to separate his life on and off the court, according to a 2014 interview with The New Yorker.
Off the court he built a business empire that stretches beyond the court + he was generous…
Bryant leaves a great legacy off the court, completely outside of basketball. Showing what pro athletes can achieve in business after retirement. Bryant’s firm has more than $2 billion in assets, with investments in dozens of technology, media and data companies.
Bryant “will live forever in the heart of Los Angeles.” He was also one of the league’s earliest global stars, pivotal in making the NBA huge in China. L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti
He earned more than +$300 million in NBA salary without the endorsement money from sponsors like Nike, McDonald’s (MCD), Sprite, Nintendo (NTDOF) and Turkish Airlines. In 2016, Kobe launched a $100 million tech investing fund with the business man and venture capitalist Bryant Stibel whom he already did business with. Their portfolio counts stakes in two dozens of tech startups and scaleups (Epic Games w. Fortnite, LegalZoom and Tile) but also stakes in giants like Alibaba and Dell.
“You’ve got to have strong entrepreneurs, that’s really the key for us is looking at the people,” Kobe Bryant
Worth mentioning is also his early investment of 6m USD in Body Armor sports drink that was exited to Coca Cola for $200 million
Here is a snippet from some of his philanthropic activities:
Kobe and Vanessa Bryant Family Foundation: Bryant and his wife started the foundation to improve the lives of young people and their families. KVBF provides scholarships and runs Mamba FC, a youth soccer club that teaches young athletes how to become leaders and independent thinkers through sports. source: CNN
After-School All-Stars: Bryant was an honorary ambassador of After-School All-Stars, a non-profit organization that partners with schools nationwide to extend school hours for low-income children. Raised money for the organization’s Los Angeles chapter, which serves 14.000 students. source: CNN
Make A Wish Foundation: Over the last 20 years, Kobe Bryant has granted more than 250 wishes of children battling life-threatening illnesses through the Make A Wish Foundation. The foundation’s Facebook page. source: CNN
Stand up to Cancer: Bryant was a champion for people battling cancer. Outside of sending motivational messages to those fighting the disease, he has raised money for research and medical expenses. In 2012, he was part of an all-star telecast. Raised +$81 million for research in Stand up to Cancer. source: CNN
The National Museum of African American History and Culture: Bryant and his wife donated at least $1 million to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. source: CNN
Looking at Kobe’s numbers they are astonishing. He officially put up 30.699 shots on the court during his career — not to mention the training ground.
Kobe was known to be a work horse and great shooters like him and Steph Curry take up to 500 shots per day in the off-season (3 month) and 200–350 shots almost every day during the season (9 months). This adds up to more than 126.000 shots per season over a 20 year period. Accumulated 126.000 shots/year x 20 years = 2.52 million shots made.
Kobe made approx 2.52 million shots during his career and probably many more considering pre- and post NBA. So for every shot he made on the court during NBA he made at least 80 extra shots on the training ground.
Assuming a shot takes 5 secs to complete from receiving the ball to firing, Kobe has been shooting the ball for non-stop (24/7) for 5 months during his career. Not to mention other drills and movement between the shots etc
This interactive maps shows every shot that Bryant made during his proff career. Super cool to explore: LINK Below is a preview….
The numbers speaks for themselves:
2016: Draft year
13: Pick in draft
5: NBA titles he won.
20: Seasons with Lakers, record in NBA history.
1346: NBA games he played.
33.643: Regular-season points.
5640: Post-season points he scored.
8378: Three-pointers he scored.
13: Times where Bryant was selected in the NBA draft.
15: The number of All-Star game appearances he made.
81: the career-high points total he scored against Toronto in 2006.
4: All-Star MVP Awards (2002, 07, 09, 11), most in NBA history
17: The number of NBA player-of-the-month awards he won.
32: The number of NBA player-of-the-week awards he won.
2: Olympic Gold medals (2008, 2012).
RIP to a legend and condolences to his family and relatives for the double loss. You have inspired a whole generation with your work ethics and dedication.
FYI. There is currently a petition taking place to change the NBA logo. The current NBA logo was designed by Alan Siegel. It features the silhouette of Los Angeles Lakers great Jerry West. Except for a small change to the font, which was introduced in 2017, the NBA has used its iconic tri-color logo since 1971. If you think this should happen, you can sign the petition here: LINK
