Kobe Bryant — one of the most popular, most successful, and most divisive players in NBA history — has announced that he will retire at the end of the 2015-16 season. The Los Angeles Lakers icon broke the news via a letter-poem on The Players’ Tribune late Sunday afternoon.
The full post is available here, but the key passage is below:
From the moment
I started rolling my dad’s tube socks
And shooting imaginary
Game-winning shots
In the Great Western Forum I knew one thing was real:
I fell in love with you.
A love so deep I gave you my all
From my mind & body
To my spirit & soul.
As a six-year-old boy
Deeply in love with you
I never saw the end of the tunnel.
I only saw myself
Running out of one.
And so I ran.
I ran up and down every court
After every loose ball for you.
You asked for my hustle
I gave you my heart
Because it came with so much more……….
The full post is available here,
Read through the poetry and the message is clear — Kobe will retire at the end of this season. The Players’ Tribune sent out a press release confirming that Kobe had announced that this season will be his last. Bryant had previously suggested that this season was likely to be his last but had not made a formal announcement regarding his future.