Originally published by LakersNation.com
Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant had a massive impact on so many people around the world as he inspired many to pursue their dreams in whatever field they desired and put everything they could into achieving their goals. One of those was former NFL cornerback Richard Sherman who was a five-time All-Pro and one of the best of his generation at his position.
Sherman grew up in Compton and was a huge fan of Bryant and the Lakers. And just getting to meet Bryant for the first time was a huge deal for him.
“I met him early on in my career,” Sherman told Kevin Clark on This is Football. “First off, I’m from L.A. and grew up watching Kobe, grew up a huge fan of his, his mentality, his approach to the game, him just being a winner and being driven and doing all the things that it takes to be the best at your given sport. And as I got to the NFL and started to have some success of my own I got a few endorsement deals and I had an endorsement with Nike. He was having a shoot the same day I was supposed to be having a shoot in the same place and it just happened to work out that way.
“And my Nike rep didn’t tell me until we got there and we were on set and Kobe was there and he was like, ‘This is a surprise for you’ and yada yada yada, and me and my brother were just blown away. Like I can meet just about anybody in the world and not be starstruck, but this is Kobe. I don’t care what nobody says, that’s my guy. So he finishes his shoot, we get to have a conversation, we get to chopping it up and he knew who I was, he knew my work, said he was a huge fan of my game. Talked about the approach I have and how he admires it and I’m just like [high-pitched voice] ‘Kobe I just tried to do what you. It’s like Muhammad Ali and you.’ My Mount Rushmore is, he’s a big part of who I am and how I approach my work. So to hear that from him was really encouraging, really fulfilling.
“We exchanged phone numbers and I said I would keep in touch, but when you have your idol’s phone number it kind of means more to have it in your phone than to use it. You try not to, mm-mm, not unless it’s an emergency. So he would reach out every now and then like, ‘Hey, just checking in on you, hope the family’s well. Saw you guys played last night.’ So I would try to do the same like, ‘Hey man, you doing alright?’ So that’s how the relationship started.”
That relationship led Sherman to ask Bryant to participate in his celebrity softball game which, to Sherman’s surprise, Bryant immediately accepted. And despite never playing the sport before, Bryant would make a memory that lasted forever.
“He comes to the game, he had never played baseball before, never played any kind of organized baseball, never swung a bat I don’t think. So he and Matt Barnes go into the cage and work on it and he bats second behind me and I hit a home run on the first at-bat. And he comes up and hits a home run on the first at-bat ever playing softball or any kind of sport. And it was a cool moment, we chest bumped and I was just like, ‘I’m floating away. This day my life is made. I don’t have to do anything else.’”
Sherman would also deal with the same major injury Bryant did when he ruptured his Achilles in 2017. And the Lakers legend was actually the first to reach out and make sure Sherman’s mind was right.
“Obviously when I ruptured it I was like yeah, I’m walking this off. Kobe walked off, I’m walking off. And so I walk off, the doctors tried to grab me and I’m like ‘Get off me. I’m walking this.’ And I walked to the sideline, I stayed there the whole rest of the game […] I get back to the locker room and I open my phone and the first message I had, I scrolled all the way down, was Kobe saying ‘Hey. Time to get to work, don’t be no bitch. You know what it is, you know the work that needs to be done. It’s not done, you’re not done, it’s not over. Get to work.’ And I was like [beats chest] yup, you’re right. So I had my 30 minutes of feeling sorry for myself and then got back on the horse and started figuring out where I was getting the surgery and what I could do to heal quickest. And that was that.”
The reason why Bryant is so beloved and revered is not just because of what he did on the basketball court, it was who he was as a person and how he attacked everything in life, and how he motivated people to do the same. Sherman just provided yet another beautiful story about why he was so legendary.
Jayson Tatum explains Kobe Bryant’s impact on him growing up
One of the biggest NBA stars of today is Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, who is a well-known Bryant fan and he spoke about the impact the Lakers icon had on him as he was growing up in St. Louis.
If you love our reporting, choose LakersNation.com as a preferred source on Google.
Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant had a massive impact on so many people around the world as he inspired many to pursue their dreams in whatever field they desired and put everything they could into achieving their goals. One of those was former NFL cornerback Richard Sherman who was a five-time All-Pro and one of the best of his generation at his position.
Sherman grew up in Compton and was a huge fan of Bryant and the Lakers. And just getting to meet Bryant for the first time was a huge deal for him.
“I met him early on in my career,” Sherman told Kevin Clark on This is Football. “First off, I’m from L.A. and grew up watching Kobe, grew up a huge fan of his, his mentality, his approach to the game, him just being a winner and being driven and doing all the things that it takes to be the best at your given sport. And as I got to the NFL and started to have some success of my own I got a few endorsement deals and I had an endorsement with Nike. He was having a shoot the same day I was supposed to be having a shoot in the same place and it just happened to work out that way.
“And my Nike rep didn’t tell me until we got there and we were on set and Kobe was there and he was like, ‘This is a surprise for you’ and yada yada yada, and me and my brother were just blown away. Like I can meet just about anybody in the world and not be starstruck, but this is Kobe. I don’t care what nobody says, that’s my guy. So he finishes his shoot, we get to have a conversation, we get to chopping it up and he knew who I was, he knew my work, said he was a huge fan of my game. Talked about the approach I have and how he admires it and I’m just like [high-pitched voice] ‘Kobe I just tried to do what you. It’s like Muhammad Ali and you.’ My Mount Rushmore is, he’s a big part of who I am and how I approach my work. So to hear that from him was really encouraging, really fulfilling.
“We exchanged phone numbers and I said I would keep in touch, but when you have your idol’s phone number it kind of means more to have it in your phone than to use it. You try not to, mm-mm, not unless it’s an emergency. So he would reach out every now and then like, ‘Hey, just checking in on you, hope the family’s well. Saw you guys played last night.’ So I would try to do the same like, ‘Hey man, you doing alright?’ So that’s how the relationship started.”
That relationship led Sherman to ask Bryant to participate in his celebrity softball game which, to Sherman’s surprise, Bryant immediately accepted. And despite never playing the sport before, Bryant would make a memory that lasted forever.
“He comes to the game, he had never played baseball before, never played any kind of organized baseball, never swung a bat I don’t think. So he and Matt Barnes go into the cage and work on it and he bats second behind me and I hit a home run on the first at-bat. And he comes up and hits a home run on the first at-bat ever playing softball or any kind of sport. And it was a cool moment, we chest bumped and I was just like, ‘I’m floating away. This day my life is made. I don’t have to do anything else.’”
Sherman would also deal with the same major injury Bryant did when he ruptured his Achilles in 2017. And the Lakers legend was actually the first to reach out and make sure Sherman’s mind was right.
“Obviously when I ruptured it I was like yeah, I’m walking this off. Kobe walked off, I’m walking off. And so I walk off, the doctors tried to grab me and I’m like ‘Get off me. I’m walking this.’ And I walked to the sideline, I stayed there the whole rest of the game […] I get back to the locker room and I open my phone and the first message I had, I scrolled all the way down, was Kobe saying ‘Hey. Time to get to work, don’t be no bitch. You know what it is, you know the work that needs to be done. It’s not done, you’re not done, it’s not over. Get to work.’ And I was like [beats chest] yup, you’re right. So I had my 30 minutes of feeling sorry for myself and then got back on the horse and started figuring out where I was getting the surgery and what I could do to heal quickest. And that was that.”
The reason why Bryant is so beloved and revered is not just because of what he did on the basketball court, it was who he was as a person and how he attacked everything in life, and how he motivated people to do the same. Sherman just provided yet another beautiful story about why he was so legendary.
Jayson Tatum explains Kobe Bryant’s impact on him growing up
One of the biggest NBA stars of today is Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, who is a well-known Bryant fan and he spoke about the impact the Lakers icon had on him as he was growing up in St. Louis.
If you love our reporting, choose LakersNation.com as a preferred source on Google.
