Has a player ever had as big an impact post-retirement on the NBA as Kobe Bryant?

[Swagnificent]

Kobe's been retired for well over a year and yet his fingerprints are all over the NBA. It started last year with Draymond Green saying he was texting Kobe back and forth when they were down 3-1 to the Thunder looking for advice. Then we got this little nugget from Brian Windhorst about Kyrie face-timing Kobe in the locker room after he won the championship in 2016.



Then you had several elite players last summer trying to work out with Kobe. Guys like Kawhi and Westbrook looked to Kobe to raise their games to an MVP level. You got young cats like Andrew Wiggins and Jayson Tatum basically patterning their games after Kobe saying they study his moves and try to emulate it. You got Isaiah Thomas saying during this year's playoffs that Kobe was the reason for his incredible performances. That Kobe would study his tape and tell him what to do. And now we got Kyrie basically looking to Kobe for advice on what to do next in his career.

This is how you know Kobe is the GOAT. He's been retired for over a year and he's still involved in every major NBA topic.

How great is our gawd?

 

[OneTimeforTheMind]

Kobe is anti Bron

 

[Swagnificent]

Also Tim Duncan has been retired just as long and ain't nobody said anything about him. Not even the Spurs who didn't miss one beat with him gone winning 60+ games once again.

Kobe is by the far the most influential player in NBA history. Even Jordan didn't have his fingerprints all over the league after he retired like Kobe does now.

 

[Swagnificent]

Kobe is anti Bron

No doubt.

 

[Ironman]

This isn't healthy

 

[One]

Also Tim Duncan has been retired just as long and ain't nobody said anything about him. Not even the Spurs who didn't miss one beat with him gone winning 60+ games once again.

Kobe is by the far the most influential player in NBA history. Even Jordan didn't have his fingerprints all over the league after he retired like Kobe does now.

 

[Ben.]

Dawg we deadass need a kobe dikk riding thread, shyt is at this point

 

[VBM]

Also Tim Duncan has been retired just as long and ain't nobody said anything about him. Not even the Spurs who didn't miss one beat with him gone winning 60+ games once again.

Kobe is by the far the most influential player in NBA history. Even Jordan didn't have his fingerprints all over the league after he retired like Kobe does now.

Spurs won 6 less games without DunGawd. Lakers won 9 more games without Kobe.

 

[Houston911]

Mamba mentality

 

[jj23]

Jordan didn't have his fingerprints on the league, he was going around to camps schooling rookies in pick up games. So more like he had his foot on dude's necks

And kobe hasn't had the reach of a Mike or a Magic yet. The current generation see him as a leader the same way previous generations saw magic and mike, but he isn't at the level of influence they had. In time that may change though

 

[madness]

Whats it gonna take to sticky a Kobe fellatio thread at the top of this forum so his stans can suck him off in peace

 

[Family Lives Matter]

Dawg we deadass need a kobe dikk riding thread, shyt is at this point

Be a heterosexual asking for a dikk riding thread brehs


Godbe lead the way for we are not worthy

 

[Swagnificent]

Who else you know has had every all-star caliber guard/forward trying to work out with them during the summer to improve their game? Only former player I've seen multiple stars go to for help in the summer is Hakeem. Other than Kobe, no elite SG/SF in the early 2000s was checking for Jordan like that after he retired. In fact people used the fact Kobe patterned his game after Jordan as a tool to attack Kobe for not being original but just a copy.

Now Kobe is the guy young players are patterning their game after. Nearly every young future star wing player like Andrew Wiggins, Jayson Tatum, Zach LaVine, and Devin Booker say they patterned their game after Kobe and look to him as a model. They're now trying to be the "next Kobe" just like in the late 90s and early 2000s there was the search for the "next Jordan".

Then you got the fact that there are multiple all-stars during the last 2 playoffs saying Kobe's advice helped them succeed. Draymond Green said Kobe's texts help the Warriors come back from being down 3-1 to the Thunder. And then this year you had Isaiah Thomas saying Kobe reviewing his film helped him score 50+ in the playoffs. Jordan wasn't giving guidance to young players after he retired during the playoffs on how to succeed. And now, off Kobe's advice, Kyrie Irving is basically dismantling the 2nd best team in the NBA that has been to 3 straight finals.

Kobe Bryant's fingerprints are all over the NBA right now. He's been retired for over a year and he's just as influential as he was when he played.

 

[Swagnificent]

Dawg we deadass need a kobe dikk riding thread, shyt is at this point

Why am I not surprised that its some cac with a LeBron avi saying this.

You mad Kobe is more respected by LeBron's own teammates than LeBron himself?

 

[Swagnificent]

Jordan didn't have his fingerprints on the league, he was going around to camps schooling rookies in pick up games. So more like he had his foot on dude's necks

And kobe hasn't had the reach of a Mike or a Magic yet. The current generation see him as a leader the same way previous generations saw magic and mike, but he isn't at the level of influence they had. In time that may change though

Stop trying to sneak Magic in this convo. There's only one dude in NBA history in Kobe's class. Michael Jordan. All other names are not worthy of being discussed.

I just want you to tell me how many stars in NBA history were asking Magic to work out with them in the summer? How many were asking him to watch tape with them to help their game? How many were talking to him about what team they should go to next?

Kobe's got all-stars of all ages from guys like Kawhi, Draymond, Isaiah, PG, Russ, and Kyrie looking to him for advice as well as young cats like Wiggins, LaVine, Tatum, and Booker trying to emulate his game. Kobe's reach of influence is unmatched. Even Jordan didn't have this many STARS looking to him the way they look to Kobe.