Kobe Bryant, born on August 23, 1978, was a legendary American basketball player who spent his entire 20-year NBA career with the Los Angeles Lakers. Regarded as one of the greatest players in basketball history, Bryant achieved numerous accolades, including five NBA championships and two Olympic gold medals. Known for his scoring prowess, competitive spirit, and work ethic, he earned 18 NBA All-Star selections and two NBA Finals MVP awards. Tragically, Bryant, along with his daughter Gianna and seven others, died in a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020. His untimely death deeply impacted the global basketball community, prompting an outpouring of grief and tributes in recognition of his significant contributions to the sport and his enduring legacy.
Kobe Bryant Quotes
1. “Great things come from hard work and perseverance. No excuses.”
— Kobe Bryant
2. “I have nothing in common with lazy people who blame others for their lack of success. Great things come from hard work and perseverance. No excuses.”
— Kobe Bryant
3. “Everything negative – pressure, challenges – is all an opportunity for me to rise.”
— Kobe Bryant
4. “It’s not about the number of hours you practice, it’s about the number of hours your mind is present during the practice.”
— Kobe Bryant
5. “Heroes come and go, but legends are forever.”
— Kobe Bryant
6. “If you’re afraid to fail, then you’re probably going to fail.”
— Kobe Bryant
7. “If you see me in a fight with a bear, pray for the bear.”
— Kobe Bryant
8. “I can’t relate to lazy people. We don’t speak the same language. I don’t understand you. I don’t want to understand you.”
— Kobe Bryant
9. “The most important thing is to try and inspire people so that they can be great in whatever they want to do.”
— Kobe Bryant
10. “I’m chasing perfection.”
— Kobe Bryant
11. “If you want to make history, you have to do historic things.”
— Kobe Bryant
12. “Those times when you get up early and you work hard; those times when you stay up late and you work hard; those times when you don’t feel like working, you’re too tired, you don’t want to push yourself, but you do it anyway; that is actually the dream. That’s the dream. It’s not the destination, it’s the journey.”
— Kobe Bryant
13. “I never tried to prove anything to someone else. I wanted to prove something to myself.”
— Kobe Bryant
14. “You always have to be on edge. You always have to take every practice, every game, like it is your last.”
— Kobe Bryant
15. “I wanna be the best, simple and plain.”
— Kobe Bryant
16. “Everybody shut up. Let us work.”
— Kobe Bryant
17. “There is power in understanding the journey of others to help create your own.”
— Kobe Bryant
18. “We all can be masters at our craft, but you have to make sacrifices that come along with making that decision.”
— Kobe Bryant
19. “My brain cannot process failure. It will not process failure”
— Kobe Bryant
20. “Listen to how everyone is talking about you. You have to use it as fuel for motivation.”
— Kobe Bryant
21. “You just stay patient, that’s all.”
— Kobe Bryant
22. “Each moment of my life I was dreaming of how great I could be, and continued working hard. Each time I closed my eyes I could see me shining bright like a sun.”
— Kobe Bryant
23. “Love me or hate me. It’s one or the other. Always has been. Hate my game, my swagger. Hate my fadeaway, my hunger. Hate that I’m a veteran, a champion. Hate that. Hate it with all your heart. And hate that I’m loved for the exact same reasons.”
— Kobe Bryant
24. “What I’m doing right now, I’m chasing perfection… and if I don’t get it, I’m going to get this close.”
— Kobe Bryant
25. “You can’t be held captive by the fear of failure or the fear of what people may say.”
— Kobe Bryant
26. “If you make it, great. If you miss it, what’s there to be afraid of?”
— Kobe Bryant
27. “When you love something, you’ll always come back to it. You’ll always keep asking questions, and finding answers.”
— Kobe Bryant
28. “Everything has a purpose. And that purpose has a story that goes along with it. It just depends on what your passion is.”
— Kobe Bryant
29. “People just don’t understand how obsessed I am with winning.”
— Kobe Bryant
30. “I focus on one thing and one thing only – that’s trying to win as many championships as I can.”
— Kobe Bryant
31. “These young guys are playing checkers. I’m out there playing chess.”
— Kobe Bryant
32. “Winning takes precedence over all. There’s no gray area. No almosts.”
— Kobe Bryant
33. “I’ll do whatever it takes to win games, whether it’s sitting on a bench waving a towel, handing a cup of water to a teammate, or hitting the game-winning shot.”
— Kobe Bryant
34. “I don’t want to be the next Michael Jordan, I only want to be Kobe Bryant.”
— Kobe Bryant
35. “My parents are my backbone. Still are. They’re the only group that will support you if you score zero or you score 40.”
— Kobe Bryant
36. “As far as carrying the torch for the years to come, I don’t know. I just want to be the best basketball player I can be.”
— Kobe Bryant
37. “I’m reflective only in the sense that I learn to move forward. I reflect with a purpose.”
— Kobe Bryant
38. “The party’s just getting started. This is where the fun starts.”
— Kobe Bryant
39. “Basketball is my refuge, my sanctuary. I go back to being a kid on the playground. When I get here, it’s all good.”
— Kobe Bryant
40. “Sports are such a great teacher. I think of everything they’ve taught me: camaraderie, humility, how to resolve differences.”
— Kobe Bryant
41. “I’m here. I’m not going anywhere. No matter what the injury – unless it’s completely debilitating – I’m going to be the same player I’ve always been. I’ll figure it out. I’ll make some tweaks, some changes, but I’m still coming.”
— Kobe Bryant
42. “The motivation for me is just the game itself, just playing the game the right way and trying to win, compete every time I step out there on the floor. That’s motivation enough for me to go out there and play well.”
— Kobe Bryant
43. “Where are your balls at?”
— Kobe Bryant
44. “I’m focused on the task that lies ahead for us.”
— Kobe Bryant
45. “I don’t just try to score. The challenge is elevating my teammates to be able to win a championship.”
— Kobe Bryant
46. “Everyone looks at your watch and it represents who you are, your values and your personal style.”
— Kobe Bryant
47. “You can’t go and anticipate what it is that you want to see. You just have to be present. Be where you are.”
— Kobe Bryant
48. “Rest at the end, not in the middle.”
— Kobe Bryant
49. “I’m playing against great players, playing against the best in the world. The competition-that’s what I’ve always wanted.”
— Kobe Bryant
50. “You’re my backbone. You’re a blessing. You’re a piece of my heart. You’re the air I breathe. And you’re the strongest person I know, and I’m so sorry for having to put you through this and having to put our family through this.”
— Kobe Bryant
51. “Once you open your eyes and start looking around you, you start picking up things that are very obvious.”
— Kobe Bryant
52. “Being a leader, it’s the art of trying to find the balance, the right times with each individual and what they need at that moment. It requires looking outward as opposed to looking inside.”
— Kobe Bryant
53. “One thing you gotta know about me is I have absolutely no filter. I have no problem saying what the hell I think of someone.”
— Kobe Bryant
54. “A lot of people say they want to be great, but they’re not willing to make the sacrifices necessary to achieve greatness. They have other concerns, whether important or not, and they spread themselves out. That’s totally fine. After all, greatness is not for everybody.”
— Kobe Bryant
55. “Christmas morning, I’m going to open presents with my kids. I’m going to take pictures of them opening the presents. Then I’m going to come to the Staples Center and get ready to work.”
— Kobe Bryant
56. “I’ve pretty much done all I can here and, you know, God will carry me the rest of the way, so I’m pretty comfortable with that.”
— Kobe Bryant
57. “When I’m finished playing, I want people to say, ‘He handled this well, he kept his cool.’”
— Kobe Bryant
58. “The important thing is that your teammates have to know you’re pulling for them and you really want them to be successful.”
— Kobe Bryant
59. “If you want to be a better player, you have to prepare, prepare, and prepare some more.”
— Kobe Bryant
60. “I don’t want to say I’ll be back at the top of my game because everybody’s gonna think I’m crazy and it’s the old player not letting go sort of thing, but that’s what it’s gonna be.”
— Kobe Bryant
61. “If you really want to be great at something you have to truly care about it. If you want to be great in a particular area, you have to obsess over it.”
— Kobe Bryant
62. “I like playing for the purple and gold. This is where I want to finish up.”
— Kobe Bryant
63. “I wear the number 10 Jersey for the US National Team in honor of the Greatest athlete I have ever seen: Messi.”
— Kobe Bryant
64. “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.”
— Kobe Bryant
65. “I was an idiot when I was a kid.”
— Kobe Bryant
66. “The people who truly know me know what I’m like. There have been people who try to say things that aren’t fair, and I check them. And then they don’t like me because I checked them.”
— Kobe Bryant
67. “It’s different from being 21 and you think there’s an endless amount of opportunities. At 33, the ending is much, much closer.”
— Kobe Bryant
68. “The Black Mamba collection of watches is me: It is my alter ego, so to speak. As I mentioned before, it is sharp, cutting edge and sleek which are characteristics I try to apply when I’m out there on the basketball court.”
— Kobe Bryant
69. “I realize now that there’s a strength in dunking that I can use to my advantage. When you dunk all the time it isn’t as demoralizing to the opponent, but when you dunk at a key moment in the game you can use it to change the momentum.”
— Kobe Bryant
70. “A lot of people say they want to be great, but they’re not willing to make the sacrifices necessary to achieve greatness.”
— Kobe Bryant
71. “The topic of leadership is a touchy one. A lot of leaders fail because they don’t have the bravery to touch that nerve or strike that chord. Throughout my years, I haven’t had that fear.”
— Kobe Bryant
72. “What does perfection look like to me? Championship rings.”
— Kobe Bryant
73. “I’m not the most patient of people.”
— Kobe Bryant
74. “He is a fool who only sees the mischiefs that are past.”
— Kobe Bryant
75. “He shouldn’t have been in the NBA, but we were too cheap to pay for a point guard.”
— Kobe Bryant
76. “I draw from the crowd a lot.”
— Kobe Bryant
77. “You want me to own a team and deal with these rich, spoiled stubborn athletes, and try to get them to perform? No thank you.”
— Kobe Bryant
78. “I was just letting the shots fly. You know, I don’t leave any bullets in the chamber.”
— Kobe Bryant
79. “What people see on court is another side of me; it’s not me.”
— Kobe Bryant
80. “I wouldn’t say I’m a ball hog. I’m a shooter.”
— Kobe Bryant
81. “Sometimes I do wonder what college would have been like. But I made my decision.”
— Kobe Bryant
82. “I don’t talk trash often, but when I do, I go for the jugular.”
— Kobe Bryant
83. “Just got one more than Shaq. You can take that to the bank.”
— Kobe Bryant
84. “There’s been a lot of talk of me being a one-man show but that’s simply not the case. We win games when I score 40 points and we’ve won when I score 10.”
— Kobe Bryant
85. “If they want to win right now, I’m all for it. That’s all I said the whole time. If you want to wait five years, let me know. My legs aren’t as young as they used to be.”
— Kobe Bryant
86. “I love going one-on-one with someone. That’s what I do. I’ve never lost. It’s a whole different game, just to have them right in front of you and be able to do whatever you want.”
— Kobe Bryant
87. “I think that game is a testament to what happens when you put no ceiling to what you’re capable of doing.”
— Kobe Bryant
88. “Dropkick Murphys get me going, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Nirvana… plus, all the regular hip-hop stuff.”
— Kobe Bryant
89. “I won’t react to something just because I’m supposed to, because I’m an African-American.”
— Kobe Bryant
90. “I wouldn’t say I’m a ball hog. I’m a shooter. I don’t necessarily hog the ball, but I put them up, though. I definitely much rather shoot it than pass it. That’s just how I am.”
— Kobe Bryant
91. “I’m extremely willful to win, and I respond to challenges. Scoring titles and stuff like that… it sounds, well, I don’t care how it sounds – to me, scoring comes easy. It’s not a challenge to me to win the scoring title, because I know I can.”
— Kobe Bryant
92. “You have to dance beautifully in the box that you’re comfortable dancing in. My box was to be extremely ambitious within the sport of basketball. Your box is different than mine. Everybody has their own. It’s your job to try to perfect it and make it as beautiful of a canvas as you can make it. And if you have done that, then you have lived a successful life. You have lived with Mamba Mentality.”
— Kobe Bryant
93. “The only thing I’m afraid of is bees. I don’t like bees. I’m allergic to them.”
— Kobe Bryant
94. “I’m not jumping through the gym by any means. But I don’t need to be able to do that in order to be a great player.”
— Kobe Bryant
95. “In an individual sport, yes, you have to win titles. Baseball’s different. But basketball, hockey? One person can control the tempo of a game, can completely alter the momentum of a series. There’s a lot of great individual talent.”
— Kobe Bryant
96. “It never bothered me when people would say, ‘You only win championships because you’re playing with Shaq.’ It bothered me when he said it.”
— Kobe Bryant
97. “I don’t think a coach becomes the right coach until he wins a championship.”
— Kobe Bryant
98. “I feel like I just returned a 100-yard kickoff in the last two minutes of the Super Bowl to win it all, only to have my run called back by a flag on the play.”
— Kobe Bryant
99. “It doesn’t matter to me what place I get traded to. If I was traded someplace – I’d play anywhere.”
— Kobe Bryant
100. “Teach players the game at an early age and stop treating them like cash cows for everyone to profit off of.”
— Kobe Bryant
101. “If I panic, everyone else panics.”
— Kobe Bryant
102. “It’s disgusting, but my father taught me when your mouth gets dry, just suck the sweat out of your own jersey. There’s no bravado to any of it; it’s just a disgusting little trick.”
— Kobe Bryant
103. “I love the weather, I love my ’63 droptop Impala, I love the 405, and I love my guys.”
— Kobe Bryant
104. “I enjoy playing at the heart of it is just a kid who really loves playing the game of basketball.”
— Kobe Bryant
105. “If there were camera phones back in the day, the biggest athletes in the world would have had a lot of explaining to do.”
— Kobe Bryant
106. “I don’t have to hear that criticism, that idiotic criticism anymore.”
— Kobe Bryant
107. “I grew up in front of these people, and now they are seeing me as an ‘older’ young man.”
— Kobe Bryant
108. “At the end of 2003, my game was complete. Shooting, defense, using the dribble, transition, midrange stuff was all there. Then it was about fine-tuning and trying to improve in each area.”
— Kobe Bryant
109. “When everyone else was thinking it was time for bed, his mind was telling him it’s time to get ahead of the competition.”
— Kobe Bryant
110. “The only aspect that can’t change, though, is that obsession.”
— Kobe Bryant
111. “My role is to make sure we’re moving in the right direction, getting points, rebounds, steals, assists and providing leadership.”
— Kobe Bryant
112. “We’re grown-ass men, you don’t need to be falling all over the place.”
— Kobe Bryant
113. “I had some shots that I felt like I should’ve made; I just didn’t make them. I’m not going to shoot the ball great every night.”
— Kobe Bryant
114. “One of the main takeaways was that you have to work hard in the dark to shine in the light. Meaning: It takes a lot of work to be successful, and people will celebrate that success, will celebrate that flash and.”
— Kobe Bryant
115. “Everybody wants to talk about NBA players being selfish and arrogant and individuals. But what you saw today was a team bonding and facing adversity and coming out with a big win.”
— Kobe Bryant
116. “Pooper scooper? Yeah, I’ve done it a few times. Every once in a while, you have to.”
— Kobe Bryant
117. “This is an award I couldn’t have won on my own. I can’t thank these guys enough. These are my guys, these are my brothers.”
— Kobe Bryant
118. “It’s not a question of if we make the playoffs; we will. And when we get there, I have no fear of anyone.”
— Kobe Bryant
119. “I’m going to be the Will Smith of the NBA.”
— Kobe Bryant
120. “I was shooting 45 times a game. What was I supposed to do? Pass it into Chris Mihm & Kwame Brown?”
— Kobe Bryant
121. “It’s hard for me to grasp the concept of somebody being nervous when I’m talking to them.”
— Kobe Bryant
122. “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 him, that was rebounding, running the floor, and blocking shots.”
— Kobe Bryant
123. “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.”
— Kobe Bryant
124. “I wasn’t willing to sacrifice my game, but I also wasn’t willing to sacrifice my family time. So I decided to sacrifice sleep, and that was that.”
— Kobe Bryant
125. “You have to work hard in the dark to shine in the light.”
— Kobe Bryant
126. “I’ve got four dogs, and I just don’t do dog doo. I’m a diva when it comes to that.”
— Kobe Bryant
127. “It doesn’t matter to me. We’re just talking about clothes. I can understand what the NBA is trying to do. I love my sneakers, but we’re just talking about clothes.”
— Kobe Bryant
128. “Magic has five championships. I have five championships. I’m pretty sure we both know what we’re doing.”
— Kobe Bryant
129. “Twitter is great to connect with fans and be transparent. I enjoy that aspect about it. But really, I’m still trying to figure it out.”
— Kobe Bryant
130. “Eeew, I’d be a little uncomfortable Googling myself. People sit there – and Google themselves? That’s kind of weird.”
— Kobe Bryant
131. “I’m a scorer, not a triple-double player.”
— Kobe Bryant
132. “Good coaches, however, teach you how to think and arm you with the fundamental tools necessary to execute properly.”
— Kobe Bryant
133. “We all know what flopping is when we see it. The stuff that you see is where guys aren’t really getting hit at all and are just flailing around like a fish out of water.”
— Kobe Bryant
134. “For us to be the team that got him that historic 10th championship is special for us.”
— Kobe Bryant
135. “As a kid, I would work tirelessly on adding elements to my game. I would see something I liked in person or on film, go practice it immediately, practice it more the next day, and then go out and use it. By the time I reached the league, I had a short learning curve. I could see something, download it, and have it down pat.”
— Kobe Bryant
136. “It’s just a matter of getting those legs back.”
— Kobe Bryant
137. “I think the definition of greatness is to inspire the people next to you.”
— Kobe Bryant
138. “The only way I was able to pick up details on the court, to be aware of the minutiae on the hardwood, was by training my mind to do that off the court and focusing on every detail in my daily life. By reading, by paying attention in class and in practice, by working, I strengthened my focus. By doing all of that, I strengthened my ability to be present and not have a wandering mind.”
— Kobe Bryant
139. “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.”
— Kobe Bryant
140. “May you always remember to enjoy the road, especially when it’s a hard one.”
— Kobe Bryant
141. “Walk until the darkness is a memory and you become the sun on the next traveler’s horizon.”
— Kobe Bryant
142. “Good coaches tell you where the fish are, great coaches teach you how to find them.”
— Kobe Bryant
143. “What separates great players from all-time great players is their ability to self-assess, diagnose weaknesses, and turn those flaws into strengths.”
— Kobe Bryant
144. “I never felt outside pressure. I knew what I wanted to accomplish, and I knew how much work it took to achieve those goals. I then put in the work and trusted in it. Besides, the expectations I placed on myself were higher than what anyone expected from me.”
— Kobe Bryant
145. “If you’re afraid to fail, then you’re probably going to fail. Pain doesn’t telle you when you ought to stop. Pain is the little voice in your head that tries to hold you back beacuse it knows if you continue you will change” -.”
— Kobe Bryant
146. “From the beginning, I wanted to be the best. I had a constant craving, a yearning, to improve and be the best. I never needed any external forces to motivate me.”
— Kobe Bryant
147. “One of the qualities that has made Kobe so successful, and always will, is his attention to detail. He always used to tell us: if you want to be a better player, you have to prepare, prepare, and prepare some more.”
— Kobe Bryant
148. “After all, greatness is not for everybody.”
— Kobe Bryant
149. “The key, though, is being aware of how you’re feeling and how you need to be feeling. It all starts with awareness.”
— Kobe Bryant
150. “To do that, despite the injury, I had to maintain control and dictate where I was going to go with the ball and how I was going to play. I had to, even on one ankle, keep the advantage in my court and never let the defense force me to do something I didn’t want to do. That was the key here, and that’s the key always.”
— Kobe Bryant
