The death of Kobe Bryant impacted so many people around the world, including students in the LMC community.

For his entire 20-year NBA career Bryant played for the Los Angeles Lakers. With the Lakers, he won five NBA championships, two of which he was named the Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP). He was voted into the NBA All-Star game 18 times in his career and was named 2008 NBA MVP.

“He was a champion and his way of winning  inspired a lot of people,” said Maria Torres.

The former shooting guard achieved Olympic glory in 2008 and 2012 representing Team USA. “At first I thought it was fake, and an hour later I checked up on it, again, and I saw it on the news. It was just really shocking. I feel that his death will motivate people to try harder in the sport and shoot for success,” said LMC student James Taylor.

Bryant was also known for his off-the-court work. In 2018, he helped launch Mamba Sports Academy, a facility that helps develop youth athletes.

“I thought it was crazy, you can be at one point in your life just enjoying it with your family, taking your daughter to her basketball game, be at a place where you’re successful, and you can just lose it all in one instant,” said student Greg Holmes. “It’s crazy, he was an [NBA] great, he was a legend.”

Bryant also served as a mentor for many athletes of different sports, not only basketball.

“His loss impacted the entire sports world because his mentality and mentorship helped a lot of athletes believe in themselves,” said student Jasmine Mejia.

Kobe Bryant will continue to impact the sports community because of the legacy he left behind. The “Mamba Mentality” will be a part of sports for years to come.