By Pastor Craig Pederson
A week has passed since the tragic helicopter crash that claimed the life of Kobe Bryant, along with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others who were on their way to a youth basketball game. As the tributes and memorials continue to accumulate in the media and online, it’s hard to put into perspective the global impact of Kobe’s high-profile life and premature death.
For me, Kobe’s legacy is complicated. As a basketball player, he was one of the greatest of all time. Period. Few players have achieved the level of personal and team accomplishments that Kobe did during his 20-year career. I’m filled with both amazement and grudging respect for his tenacity and success on the court. I say “grudging” respect because, too often, it was Kobe and the Los Angeles Lakers who ended the playoff dreams of my favorite team, the Minnesota Timberwolves, back in the 2000s.
“I relate to Kobe having a 13-year-old daughter who loved basketball. So do I.”
And his “Mamba Mentality” – a fearless, disciplined, don’t-back-down approach to the game – inspired a generation of basketball players the way Michael Jordan inspired my generation.
AS A FAMILY MAN and community leader, Kobe was also impressive. He was highly engaged in the lives of his four daughters and his wife Vanessa, and he became an outspoken supporter of opportunities for women in sports. And in his “second act” – life after retirement from the NBA – Kobe was expanding into an eclectic list of business and entertainment pursuits with the same “Mamba” intensity he showed on the court.
On the other hand, in 2003 Kobe was charged with criminal sexual assault against a hotel worker in Colorado. The case was ultimately dropped when the victim declined to testify, and a civil suit was later settled out of court. But his reputation was severely tarnished, and the incident still feels unsettling all these years later when viewed through the lens of the #MeToo Movement.
WHETHER YOU’RE A rabid basketball fan or hadn’t heard of Kobe until a week ago, I think there are aspects of Kobe’s story that almost anyone can relate to – and might also find complicated. Kobe’s relentless work ethic and uncompromising drive to win clearly produced results, but at times they also alienated others and clouded his judgment. Kobe’s celebrity made him the focal point of any room he entered – even in the star-studded Los Angeles area – yet he was also known to support and befriend people who were well out of the limelight.
Kobe had developed an intellectual curiosity to learn from the best in other fields. He was known to contact leaders in other industries out of the blue to ask for a meeting so that he could learn what made them successful. While this was an admirable trait that broadened his base of knowledge, some worried that he was too unfocused or was spreading himself too thin.
Kobe’s commitment to increasing opportunities in women’s athletics provided an incredible boost for raising awareness and resources. But there was also skepticism that this was primarily his attempt to redeem himself in the eyes of the public and his own family for his transgressions earlier in his life.
I relate to Kobe having a 13-year-old daughter who loved basketball. So do I. On that fateful morning of the crash, it was reported that they were running late so they decided to take the helicopter to get to her game rather than try to navigate the L.A. traffic. How many times have I rushed or been less cautious than I should have to get to our daughter’s game on time? Too many to count.
“Kobe’s relentless work ethic and uncompromising drive to win clearly produced results, but at times they also alienated others and clouded his judgment.”
A lesser known aspect of Kobe’s life was that he was a practicing Catholic. It was reported that he leaned heavily on the counsel of a priest to deal with his sexual assault charges back in 2003. It was also reported that he had attended a 7 a.m. mass on the Sunday morning of the terrible crash that took his and his daughter’s life.
We don’t know what message he heard that morning, but I hope and trust that Kobe and his family heard the promises of Jesus Christ many times before: We are fully saint and sinner, and we are beloved children of God, regardless of our accomplishments or flaws; that Christ’s redemption and new life shine light into our darkness; and that neither heights nor depths nor anything else can separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ.
Legacies can be complicated, but God’s love need not be. God bless the memory of Kobe, Gianna, and the seven others whose lives ended last Sunday. May their eternal light shine.