Kobe Bryant talking about his parentage and his obsession with Michael Jordan, it almost reads religiously.
Kobe Bryant talking about his parentage and his obsession with Michael Jordan, it almost reads religiously.
The relationship between Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan doesn’t need to be proven. At the memorial for the Los Angeles Lakers legend, « MJ » was crying his « little brother » and explained a few years ago that the only one who could beat him in one-on-one was Kobe Bryant. This mimicry pushed to the extreme, Kobe explained it three years before his death, in a fascinating interview with Howard Beck (one of the members of the exceptional editorial board for the REVERSE #4 New York Mook).
We’ve translated this detailed and profound answer for you, which allows you to better understand Kobe Bryant’s approach and the way he used Michael Jordan and his legend to guide his every step.
« I copied almost 100% of his technique. I saw him as the sum of all the other great backs before him: the likes of Jerry West, Pete Maravich, or even wing players like Elgin Baylor, David Thompson or Julius Erving. To me, Michael Jordan was the product of all their techniques.
When I watched Michael play, I was mostly watching his footwork, the places on the court from which he attacked. How did he attack from there? Why did he attack from there?
I used to have trouble shooting over taller players. I remember doing a pick-up game with Richard Dumas when I was 16. I couldn’t get my shot off over him. He kept fucking countering me. So I went home and immediately watched the 1993 Finals, to see what technique Michael Jordan used to throw Dumas off balance and be able to get up over him to shoot. I’m the same size as Michael, so I wondered if there was something I was doing wrong technically and if I could change that. »
Et Kobe a extrapolé cette approche d’étudiant du jeu à d’autres domaines où il estime qu’elle est tout aussi efficace.
« I learned a lot doing that. It’s the same in every profession. In film, between Hitchcock and Scorsese, or even things like what Damien Chazelle is doing with La La Land drawing on other musicals. There’s a common denominator in all of that. I think when you really want to accomplish something, you have to study the greats that came before you. You have to study their technique, use it and try to push it as far as you can. »
