Soon there is going to be a documentary on Showtime about Kobe Bryant and his comeback this season, one that will undoubtedly play to the mythology of Kobe and his toughness, his determination, his single-mindedness. It promises to be interesting.
Kobe and his comeback also are the cover story this week in Sports Illustrated, a brilliant feature by one of the very best NBA writers, Chris Ballard. A story with a lot of great quotes and anecdotes.
However this one may be the best one, tying the documentary into it. Gotham Chopra, the director of the documentary, asked a lot of players to describe Kobe in three words. (Hat tip to Business Insider/Yahoo.)“After each interview Kobe would text Chopra, eager to hear what people said. Most answered with some variation of ‘the ultimate competitor’ or ‘killer instinct.’ But when Chopra asked Steve Nash, he said something different. After thinking for a moment, Nash answered, slowly, in three beats: ‘Mother ... f****** ... a******.’
“Kobe thought this was awesome.”
He is. In a good way (most of the time). That attitude is part of what made Kobe who he is. His work ethic, his drive to prove himself the ultimate alpha male. Of course he loved that. And Nash knew it.
Of course, that attitude combined with his large contract, is going to make it hard to attract any major free agents in the next couple years. It has always been a double edged sword for Kobe. But he doesn’t have five rings and doesn’t go down as one of the game’s all-time greats without it.
