LOS Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant has announced that he will retire at the end of the 2015/16 NBA season.
In a poem titled ‘Dear Basketball’, penned for The Players’ Tribune, Bryant announced, “This season is all I have left to give.”
“My heart can take the pounding. My mind can handle the grind. But my body knows it’s time to say goodbye.”
Bryant opened his poem by talking about how he initially fell in love with the game.
Dear Basketball,
From the moment
I started rolling my dad’s tube socks
And shooting imaginary
Game-winning shots
In the Great Western Forum
I knew one thing was real:
I fell in love with you.
A love so deep I gave you my all —
From my mind & body
To my spirit & soul.
As a six-year-old boy
Deeply in love with you
I never saw the end of the tunnel.
I only saw myself
Running out of one.
And so I ran.
I ran up and down every court
After every loose ball for you.
You asked for my hustle
I gave you my heart
Because it came with so much more.
I played through the sweat and hurt
Not because challenge called me
But because YOU called me.
I did everything for YOU
Because that’s what you do
When someone makes you feel as
Alive as you’ve made me feel.
You gave a six-year-old boy his Laker dream
And I’ll always love you for it.
But I can’t love you obsessively for much longer.
This season is all I have left to give.
My heart can take the pounding
My mind can handle the grind
But my body knows it’s time to say goodbye.
And that’s OK.
I’m ready to let you go.
I want you to know now
So we both can savor every moment we have left together.
The good and the bad.
We have given each other
All that we have.
And we both know, no matter what I do next
I’ll always be that kid
With the rolled up socks
Garbage can in the corner
:05 seconds on the clock
Ball in my hands.
5 … 4 … 3 … 2 … 1
Love you always,
Kobe
KOBE BRYANT
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The 2015/16 NBA season has been a struggle for Bryant, with the 37-year-old unable to find any rhythm on the offensive end as the Lakers sit at a dismal 2-13 record for the season.
Bryant is currently the highest paid player in the NBA, earning $US25 million this season, with his contract set to expire at the season’s end.
Bryant was drafted out of high school by the Charlotte Hornets with the 13th pick in the 1996 NBA draft, and was immediately traded to the Lakers.
During his time with the Lakers, Bryant won five NBA Championships, two NBA Finals MVP awards, and was named the league’s MVP in 2008. Bryant is also a two-time NBA scoring champion, 17-time All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medallist.
Bryant is currently third on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, only behind Kareem-Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver released a statement regarding Bryant’s announcement.
“With 17 NBA All-Star selections, an NBA MVP, five NBA championships with the Lakers, two Olympic gold medals and relentless work ethic, Kobe Bryant is one of the greatest players in the history of our game,” Silver said.
“Whether competing in the Finals or hoisting jump shots after midnight in an empty gym, Kobe has an unconditional love for the game. I join Kobe’s millions of fans around the world in congratulating him on an outstanding NBA career and thank him for so many thrilling memories.”
Bryant will play his final game at the Staples Center on April 13 against the Utah Jazz.
The 2015/16 NBA season has been a struggle for Bryant, with the 37-year-old unable to find any rhythm on the offensive end as the Lakers sit at a dismal 2-13 record for the season.
Bryant is currently the highest paid player in the NBA, earning $US25 million this season, with his contract set to expire at the season’s end.
Bryant was drafted out of high school by the Charlotte Hornets with the 13th pick in the 1996 NBA draft, and was immediately traded to the Lakers.
During his time with the Lakers, Bryant won five NBA Championships, two NBA Finals MVP awards, and was named the league’s MVP in 2008. Bryant is also a two-time NBA scoring champion, 17-time All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medallist.
Bryant is currently third on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, only behind Kareem-Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver released a statement regarding Bryant’s announcement.
“With 17 NBA All-Star selections, an NBA MVP, five NBA championships with the Lakers, two Olympic gold medals and relentless work ethic, Kobe Bryant is one of the greatest players in the history of our game,” Silver said.
“Whether competing in the Finals or hoisting jump shots after midnight in an empty gym, Kobe has an unconditional love for the game. I join Kobe’s millions of fans around the world in congratulating him on an outstanding NBA career and thank him for so many thrilling memories.”
Bryant will play his final game at the Staples Center on April 13 against the Utah Jazz.
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