Kobe Bryant made his retirement announcement in seemingly unique and original form.
Bryant wrote a poem published at The Players’ Tribune that served as his love letter to basketball. It was creative, heartfelt, and got across his point well about his time was up.
But just how unique and original was the idea? Not as original as you’d think.
It turns out that Kobe’s poem is very similar to the love letter to basketball Michael Jordan wrote when he retired from the game in 2003.
MJ wrote his letter on April 20th and it was printed in The Washington Post, The New York Times and the LA Times. You can see the text in full here.
We have broken down some of the portions that are very similar.
—-
MJ:
Dear basketball, it’s been 28 years since I saw you in the back of our garage. 28 years since our parents introduced us.”
Kobe:
Dear Basketball,
From the moment
I started rolling my dad’s tube socks
…
As a six-year-old boy
Deeply in love with you
I never saw the end of the tunnel.
—-
MJ:
So I practiced. I hustled. I worked on my game. Passing. Dribbling. Shooting. Thinking.
I ran. I did sit-ups. I did push-ups. I did pull-ups. I lifted weights. I studied you.
I began to fall in love and you noticed.
Kobe:
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.
—-
MJ:
I love you, Basketball. I love everything about you and I always will.
Kobe:
You gave a six-year-old boy his Laker dream
And I’ll always love you for it.
—-
Those portions all seem pretty similar, don’t they?
Remember a few years ago Scottie Pippen said Kobe modeled his game after MJ’s and even walked and talked like Jordan? Few disagreed with him (and this video amazingly supports that). Now we know that Kobe even retires the way MJ did.
