The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Kobe’s vast legacy lifts up females
A world without Kobe Bryant doesn’t seem real.
Today, the world feels not quite as iconic.
Not as competitive.
Not as relentless.
For all of us in Generation X, around the age Bryant lost his life far too soon at 41, life feels not quite as immortal.
The all-time Lakers great died along with his daughter Gianna and seven others in a helicopter crash Jan. 26 in California.
Once more, it is cruelly reinforced how precious every moment can be, how the most menial complaints of life are irrelevant.
The legacy of a legend shines into the expanse of all time. But legends on down, we are all mortal.
Difficult as it is, through grief and tears in celebration of and deference to Bryant, there is one facet that should be toward the top of the list as far as legacy.
A father of four daughters, there was no more prominent champion for female empowerment through sports at all levels.
On that point, perhaps as much as the 81 in 2006 against the Raptors or the 33,643 in his captivating career, we should strive for a similar mamba mentality.
Whether it was coaching his daughter’s youth basketball team or cheering on the best in women’s college basketball, the WNBA, soccer and Olympic sports, Bryant was as aggressive as he was on the court eyeing a mid-range jumper at the buzzer for the win.
Because he realized, looking into his eyes of his daughters, he had a role in ensuring a better present and future for everyone’s daughters.
“It’s about learning and having fun,” Bryant told ESPN’s Holly Rowe about being a youth basketball coach during last year’s WNBA All-Star game. “And what I’ve learned is the most important thing, for kids at that age, is to try to pique their curiosity, get them curious, get them asking questions. And then they own their own development vs. trying to coach and instruct them over and over. You get them asking questions, ‘How do I do this better? How do I do that better?’ And you watch them enjoy the game. There’s so much more than being told what to do.
“It’s important to see great basketball. And also, just for the women’s game
in general, it’s important to raise awareness about it, to have more women out there playing the game. And it’s the future.”
All around the world, it’s not just little boys.
There are little girls picking up a basketball and dribbling alone in a driveway or a local park.
There are little girls taking a soccer ball and working on technical skill on a field far from the spotlight.
There are little girls stepping on a track and doing high knees as they prepare for a workout.
There are little girls who dream about being the next Olympic star and worldwide phenomenon, and they should never be told they can’t.
Bryant appeared in 2018 on ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” during which he discussed raising four daughters and Gianna’s WNBA desire.
“The best thing that happens is when we go out, and fans will come up to me,” Bryant said. “She’ll be standing next
to me, and they’ll be like, ‘Hey, you’ve got to have a boy. You and (wife Vanessa) have got to have a boy, have somebody carry on your tradition, the legacy.’ She says, ‘Oh, I’ve got this. You don’t need boys for that. I’ve got this.’ ”
The sparkle in his eyes and smile on his face showed what that meant to him.
We live in a world in which female athletes are regularly told by men on social media they should go back to the kitchen, among similar sentiment. Yes, those men are ignorant and exhibiting lack of masculinity amid that vile nonsense.
But even as progress is made, it can never be easy for a female athlete.
They’re told the ceiling only goes so high, that it’s only so viable.
They’re told only so many people will watch women’s sports in person or on television.
Whether it was courtside with his daughter at a WNBA game, visiting Oregon’s or UConn’s women’s
basketball powerhouses or expressing excitement over the U.S. women’s national soccer side at the World Cup, Bryant maximized his platform to ensure aspiration was inclusive.
In expressing the league’s sorrow over Bryant’s death, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said, “Kobe’s support for the WNBA and women’s basketball along with his passion for helping young girls and boys follow their dreams made him a true legend for our sport. We admired him not just as a legendary basketball player, but as a father, a youth coach and a role model for future generations of athletes.”
That passion for women’s sports carried to U.S. women’s national soccer team matches and support during World Cup cycles.
“We’re here to support the USA women’s soccer team,” Bryant once said. “They’re the best in the world. Of course we’re here. We’ve got to show our love and show our support. They’re great examples
and role models to my girls.”
As he was for them. In this space, I’ve mentioned over the years the fraternity that is the fathers of daughters.
We strive every day so our girls get better chances than the girls in our generation may have had.
We can also appreciate when our brethren go beyond the call.
We admire the tenacity of being there for every event and practice, for being the voice encouraging others to lend theirs.
We marvel at those who can make a tangible difference for their children and ours.
Bryant was an example of the highest order there.
In the hours after Bryant’s death, I sat with my only child, my 7-year-old daughter, and explained why Bryant was important to me and the world.
Sure, it has a lot to do with what occurred when he was wearing No. 8 or No. 24, or donning the red, white and blue for his
country.
But it also came as the father of daughters.
He showed us it matters to allow female athletes of all ages to dream.
It matters to open proverbial doors for everyone’s access.
It matters to not just talk a good game, but be there for a soccer match or basketball game or swim meet or track and field invitational and watch in amazement at our girls’ exploits.
The chances of any girl anywhere taking her dream in sports beyond any ceiling are better in part because of Bryant’s example as a father, athlete and icon.
We wish beyond our capacity you were still standing shoulder to shoulder with us, Kobe.
But rest assured, Mamba.
We’ve got this, because your vision carries on.