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Mark Chalifoux
Kobe saves Valentines Day
Sports Gospel
Feb 14
It takes little imagination to guess what Kobe will be doing with his Valentine this week. It will probably start with him watching some films to get in the mood and learn a few new tricks. He will get down to business after some quick stretching and some quick work on his stroking technique. Surely there will be a healthy dose of ball handling before Kobe takes it aggressively to the rack. He will then move to working on some back door cuts before getting to the finale- lots and lots of penetration.
Of course, keep in mind one thing, Kobe’s Valentine isn’t a woman, or even a person. Kobe’s true love is the game of basketball.
It may seem shocking to some people that Kobe reserves his greatest love for a game, but who are we to get in the way of true love? After all, Kobe had some strong words for the love of his life in the February issue of Dime.
“I played because I loved it. I played because it meant more to me than even I knew. When I needed someone to lean on, a place to vent, a place to celebrate or a place to cry, the game became all of these things for me. And because the game has given me so much I know that I must give it the respect it deserves. I must work hard to master it, to show it my appreciation for all it has done for me as a person, as a man. That's the reason I'm able to play under severe pressure or stress. The game has actually helped me cope with it. It has helped me win. Not in terms of the points scored, but in terms of the struggles that I have overcome. More and more I feel like this is the reason I train so hard, why I push myself past every limit. The more obstacles that are placed between me and my goals, the hungrier I become.”- Kobe Bryant, on the game of basketball- DIME
In fact, if you take out references to the game and a few other specifics, it makes a fairly decent ad-libs Valentine’s Day Card. The level of love that exists between Kobe and basketball is a love most people don’t get to experience in life, so who are we to judge something so pure? More importantly, why wouldn’t basketball be the love of his life?
Basketball has, according to him, given Kobe so much in life. Basketball has helped him through his greatest struggles. For instance, look at the biggest controversy Kobe has faced in his life- the sexual assault allegations he faced awhile back. Who was there for him? Certainly not his wife, she was mainly crying, yelling, and being generally upset. Basketball, however, helped him through his rough time.
Now, just because Kobe’s first love is basketball doesn’t mean he doesn’t love his wife. When detectives first confronted Kobe after the rape allegations were made, he was only concerned with one thing- his wife.
Kobe- is there any way for me to settle this, whatever it is, I mean
Detective- well, what do you mean by settle?
Kobe- If my wife, if my wife found out that anybody made any type of allegations against me she’d be infuriated.
Detective- Kobe…
Kobe- That’s all I care about.
-Police report
See? He isn’t concerned about himself; all he cares about is his wife. At a time when things were about to go very wrong for him, he was more worried about those closest to him and how to protect them. Still, basketball is his first love and rightfully so. After all, did he have to buy basketball a million-dollar ring after he cheated on it by playing soccer when he was younger? Of course not.
I know most people might be taken aback by Kobe’s level of love for basketball, but this is a good thing. If you think about it, Kobe Bryant has forever saved Valentines Day. It is no longer a day to celebrate love between people, but a day to celebrate love, whether it is for a person, an inanimate object, an ideal, or even a game.
For instance, the dorky guy in his 20s who has never had a Valentines Day date will not spend this Feb 14th alone, as he can spend it with his true love (Final Fantasy XVXIXV). Fat girls finally aren’t forced to be on the outside looking in when it comes to love, as they can now spend St. V’s day with a heaping bowl full of jelly. Sure, this is leading down a path where we will ultimately have kids taking their Xboxes to prom, but we will end up with a more loving world. And that’s what Kobe wanted all along.
Well, that, and to get in one last jump shot before bed.
The Sports Gospel is sponsored by www.betonsports.com. www.betonsports.com gives you the greatest sports action to bet on-Wager on football, cricket, Boxing, Rugby, Horse Racing and more. Mark Chalifoux is a columnist for SportsFan Magazine. You can reach him at Rockne48@und.com.
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