Have you ever loved anything this much?
Written By; Kobe Bryant ~https://www.theplayerstribune.com/articles/dear-basketball~
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
My daughter shared this with me today and brought tear to my eyes, so I had to share it with my favorite people. I hope y’all enjoyed this as much as I did.
You could have chosen any blog to read, but you chose mine, and I’m honored!
~Belladonna~
Beautiful ❤️
I love this so much!
Such a beautiful poem
I love this so much and I’m glad you enjoyed it.
My pleasure
Wow! Wow! So beautiful! She is amazing, very creative lke her mom.
Congratulations Belladonna! Must be so proud! Thank’s for share.
Thank you Elvira. You are so wonderful
You are welcome, dear Belladonna. Aww! You are so kind 🙏
How nice.
I thought is was as well! Glad you liked it.
WOW. Amazing. LOVE it! Thanks for sharing.💕
Isn’t it so beautiful! So glad you thought so too.
Yesss. Absolutely 💕
Wonderful, love it!! ❤️🌹
Me too! Glad you liked it!
Totally enjoyed. Teary 🥲 lovely.
This was so touching and I had to share it. It’s a tear jerker for sure.
This was written by Mr Bryant? That’s so touching, I didn’t know he was a poet 👏 Thanks for sharing!
Yes it was. I didn’t know her was either but he definitely was good at this as well. He was such a talented man.
So touching, and so beautiful!
I thought so too KK! Glad you enjoyed it.
My pleasure truly!
WOW Belladonna, this is quite a tear-jerker. I remember when it was announced what happened on that fateful day when that helicopter went down. It’s still hard to believe. Yet, this beautiful poem is a reminder of what love embodies! Thanks for sharing! 🤗💖😘
That day shook the world! I can barely watch old highlights of him without tearing up. Kobe and his beautiful daughter were on their way to changing the way many of us see the WNBA. Putting it on the map!
I know girl. So heartbreaking! 😥
Still to this day!
You got that right. It’s like someone in my family died such a tragic death. 😭
YES!!!!!!