Nobody in this world will ever understand what @kobebryant meant to me and still and forever will mean to me. My childhood and adolescence wasn’t great. Sports were a distraction. I remember watching Kobe as a high schooler and saying to myself “wherever he gets drafted... (1/x)

That will be my team. On draft night in 1996 I was like “okay I’m a hornets fan.” Thankfully Charlotte is dumb (or THE LOGO Jerry West) is really smart and he was traced to LA. I became a “laker fan.” The reality is I was never a laker fan. I was a KOBE fan. (2/x)

(3/x) ... since then I’ve collected his rookie cards, watched him from afar and up close. I saw him play over 20 times in person & even met him once in our Minneapolis hotel. The truth is I always Kobe for his work ethic, his killer instinct. But also...

(4/x) he provided great distractions from a tough life. It’s ok if you roll your eyes at this. I get it. “How can you idolize an athlete that way?” is something I’ve heard a lot. Whatever. You don’t get it. That’s fine. Kobe taught me to fight. To compete. To never settle...

(5/x) He will forever be my favorite athlete. I’m ok if you don’t get it. His death hit me HARD. Sent me spiraling. Nobody understood. I talked at length (more than this thread describes) with my therapist about how heartbroken I was. I felt helpless. I felt judged.

(6/6) but at the end of the day all I have been able to do is live the #MambaMentality & share my love for Kobe w/ my kids (before covid) & name my new puppy #Mamba. Happy birthday, legend. This isn’t fair. Love you, forever, KB24. #MambaDay #MambaForever #PeepThePics