RIP Kobe Bryant

you had class? Fourth grade we popped the TV on and that was class.

 

His book "West By West" is a hell of a good read. I don't know if it sold all that well, but the man was candid. I have a good deal of respect for him.

 

Ernie Johnson and Kenny Smith were among the folks on CNN Sunday night talking about Kobe. Two damn good interviews.

 

WaPo has taken the reporter off of paid administrative leave after determining that she did not violate the paper’s social media policy.

A ton of folks (mostly women) have supported the WaPo reporter for tweeting about Kobe’s sexual assault case. There are, of course, some who say that those details of his life should not be mentioned publicly at this time.

 

Kobe Bryant made a huge impact on his sport during his life.

In the aftermath of the crash, I see him and his death also making a major impact on air travel. I predict that "black boxes" will become a requirement, to be carried and employed on every aircraft that is made, sold and used.

Actually, I thought they already were part and parcel of aircraft equipment, but alas, apparently not. And I've read that the lack of a black box in this case might hinder the investigation and impact adversely any knowledge of what happened.

 

Only Shaq can take something like last night, make it about himself for seven minutes, teach us a lesson and it still feels right.

Shaq’s size makes him seem so inhuman but his ability to share about being too busy to talk to people and not sleeping at night makes him seem like one of the most human celebrities.

And unsure if it was true across the board, but after he shared Kobe was the person who would reach out with texts... that just seems so different than what we would think looking at their public image.

 

One striking (to me anyhow) revelation of the last few days is how Bryant was more popular, maybe even revered, inside the world of elite sports than he was on the outside.

 

He got caught doing what they all do, paid out some cash, and came out the other side with Obama as his friend. That’s what they admire