You know it's about to be a sad one when you have to write about someone in the past tense. Another unbelievable talent gone too soon. Kobe Bryant tragically passed away in a helicopter crash in 2020, aged 41, with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna. He was more than just a phenomenal basketball player and the Los Angeles Lakers superstar. Bryant was the "Girl Dad," a husband, writer, producer, philanthropist, and a truly inspirational figure for many.
Although The Black Mamba left us far too soon, he profoundly impacted basketball, culture, and the entire world. Two years before his death, Kobe wrote his first book, a basketball memoir, The Mamba Mentality: How I Play. In the book, he shared his personal perspective on life and career and his insightful playing style. However, not only his Mamba mentality was put into words and typed out. Derived from plenty of interviews, public messages, and presumably from his book, many Kobe Bryant quotes, both motivational and uplifting, serve as an inspiration for many people worldwide.
Kobe Bryant's inspirational quotes show the tenacity, ambition, and drive that made him an icon and a hero for many. Among the many motivational quotes, Kobe will forever be remembered for all he contributed to the basketball community, the city of LA, his family, and the entire world, really. Although Kobe Bryant's passing is still felt by people of all backgrounds, his unparalleled influence will never be forgotten.
Below, we've gathered some of the most inspiring quotes and quotes about working hard that demonstrate what an actual legend Kobe was. Forever in our hearts, rest in peace, Black Mamba.
Is there a Kobe Bryant quote that inspired you to reach for the heights and move mountains? Let us know!
#101
"I want to learn how to become the best basketball player in the world. And if I'm going to learn that, I gotta learn from the best. Kids go to school to be doctors or lawyers, so forth and so on and that's where they study. My place to study is from the best."
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#102
"I have self-doubt. I have insecurity. I have fear of failure. I have nights when I show up at the arena and I'm like, 'My back hurts, my feet hurt, my knees hurt. I don't have it. I just want to chill.' We all have self-doubt. You don't deny it, but you also don't capitulate to it. You embrace it."
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#103
"I want to see if I can. I don't know if I can. I want to find out. I want to see it. I'm going to do what I always do: I'm going to break it down to its smallest form, and smallest detail, and go after it. Day by day, one day at a time."
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#104
"Losing is losing. There aren’t different degrees of losing. You either win a championship or you’re s**t. It’s very black and white to me."
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#105
"Have a good time. Life is too short to get bogged down and be discouraged. You have to keep moving. You have to keep going. Put one foot in front of the other, smile, and just keep on rolling."
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#106
"I had to organize things. So I created the ‘Black Mamba.’ So Kobe has to deal with these issues, all the personal challenges. The Black Mamba steps on the court and does what he does. I’m destroying everybody that steps on the court."
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#107
"The message was that if you want to win championships, you have to let people focus on what they do best while you focus on what you do best. For me, that was rebounding, running the floor, and blocking shots."
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#108
"The last time I was intimidated was when I was six years old in karate class. I was an orange belt and the instructor ordered me to fight a black belt who was a couple of years older and a lot bigger. I was scared s**tless. I mean, I was terrified and he kicked my a**. But then I realized he didn't kick my a** as bad as I thought he was going to and that there was nothing really to be afraid of."
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#109
"We all can be masters at our craft, but you have to make a choice. What I mean by that is, there are inherent sacrifices that come along with that. Family time, hanging out with friends, being a great friend, being a great son, nephew, whatever the case may be. There are sacrifices that come along with making that decision."
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#110
"Boos don’t block dunks."
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#111
"I don’t want chumps, I don’t want pushovers, and if you’re a chump and a pushover, I will run over you."
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#112
"My brain... it cannot process failure. It will not process failure. Because if I sit there and have to face myself and tell myself, ‘You’re a failure’... I think that’s almost worse than death."
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#113
"The story continues. If you fail on Monday, the only way it’s a failure is if you decide to not progress from that. To me, that’s why failure does not exist. If I fail today, I’m going to learn something from that failure. I’m going to try again."
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#114
"I want to make sure that they’re growing up in a world better than the one we are currently living in."
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#115
"It’s an understanding that you can’t have life without death, can’t have light without the dark, right? So it’s an acceptance of that."
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#116
“The mindset isn’t about seeking a result—it’s more about the process of getting to that result. It’s about the journey and the approach. It’s a way of life. I do think that it’s important, in all endeavors, to have that mentality.”
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#117
“You can manipulate an opponent’s strength and use it against them.”
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#118
“What I mean by that is: if I wanted to implement something new into my game, I’d see it and try incorporating it immediately. I wasn’t scared of missing, looking bad, or being embarrassed. That’s because I always kept the end result, the long game, in my mind. I always focused on the fact that I had to try something to get it, and once I got it, I’d have another tool in my arsenal. If the price was a lot of work and a few missed shots, I was OK with that.”
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#119
“Some people, after all, enjoy looking at a watch; others are happier figuring out how the watch works.”
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#120
“When everyone else was thinking it was time for bed, his mind was telling him it’s time to get ahead of the competition.”
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