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Dear Kobe,

You were born on August 23rd, 1978 and I was born on August 16th, 1991. You were in the NBA at age 18 in 1996 when I was 5 years old. Though we have never met you felt like an older brother and role model to me.

Your Mamba Mentality is not just for sports but for every day life. My earliest memories of watching you was your first year of your 3-peat with Shaq and the Los Angeles Lakers that you played a legendary 20 year career for. The Lakers games and power rangers were 2 of my favorite things to watch.

I was born with a pre-existing condition called panhypopituitarism which God graciously healed me from at age 17. I’ve never been able to see well out of my right eye so it has been a challenge to do things I enjoy. I loved playing basketball growing up but did not trust myself dribbling with my right hand. One thing I noticed you did when you played was make adjustments in game to find ways to score whether it was to post-up or pump-fake a defender to get to your spot to take the shot. 

I have learned over the years how to adjust to accomplish things I like to do. Your passion, work ethic and Mamba Mentality are things that have inspired me ever since I started watching you. My passion for power rangers led me to join American Defense Karate. Like you showed up daily to practice and games each season for 20 years for the Los Angeles Lakers, I showed up every day for about 8 years where I worked hard and earned my white, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, brown, brown with a black stripe and ultimately black belt. I showed up daily, worked hard and became a life scout. I showed up daily, worked hard and earned my bachelors degree in communications from The Master’s University. Although I did not play college basketball I adjusted and pursued my basketball passion and was the team manager of The Master’s University Mustangs from 2010-14.

I had the pleasure of meeting Mike Penberthy and seeing him work out with the players I managed on the Mustangs. He made 444 threes for the Mustangs and I enjoyed hearing his stories from his time playing with you and Shaq on the Lakers. My love for the Lakers also led me to go to a few of your games including your game where you tore your achilles, made those amazingly clutch free throws and willed your team to the playoffs that season. I enjoyed listening to you in person at the Lakers All Access event where I met Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, James Worthy, AC Green, Brian Shaw and Mark Madsen.

I gave Mark Madsen my business card for The Cannon Network https://thecannonnetwork.com/ which is the business I am building to share stories from around the college basketball world at each level.

I appreciated watching your games, listening about your work ethic from other amazing NBA players on various platforms like podcasts or pregame interviews. I am thankful that you gave your all at the game of basketball. You sparked a love for basketball in me and I am excited to continue to share my love for basketball on The Cannon Network.

I am thankful for your Mamba Academy. Although I have not been I know a lot of people including Mike Penberthy and Logan Quinn who have used it to train and work out with NBA and college stars.

I am thankful for the work you have done to help advance the game of basketball with young boys and girls. I loved watching you and hearing you talk about basketball and life lessons you learned through it.

You inspire me and countless others to be excellent in what we do. Thank you Kobe. I am praying your family, friends and loved ones. I will continue to pursue excellence with The Cannnon Network and all aspects of my life. Your legacy lives forever.

#MambaMentality #Kobeslegacyisforever #TheCannonNetwork

Thank you for reading my work on The Cannon Network. With The Cannon Network I bring you stories from every level of basketball. I have had coaches, players and team managers share advice and their journey in the basketball world with me.

I have been making info graphics teams, coaches, players and team managers. I managed an NAIA team and worked with every level of player. Managing my college team led me to study every level of basketball and I enjoy writing about every level including NAIA, NCAA, NCCAA, USCAA, JUCO and Canadian basketball.

I will also be writing about other sports on The Cannon Network. Here are ways you can support me on The Cannon Network.  Every donation of any amount is very appreciated. You can support me through 1 time or monthly donations through PayPal. If you are a coach, player or team manager and want to share your story with The Cannon Network then message me on my social media platforms.  Follow The Cannon Network here.