A few weeks ago I was in Palm Springs participating in the lugubrious task of looking for an assisted living facility for a relative when I received a phone call from my son. “Kobe Bryant just died in a helicopter crash,” he uttered in disbelief. After a short period of “it can’t be,” a wave of sadness and tears enveloped me. Crying does not come easily to this sexagenarian, especially for the demise of such a public figure.
Why was I so profoundly affected? Of course, the tragedy of losing his young daughter and the others who were in the prime of life was obvious. But, after a few days of reflection, I realized that basketball had been a refuge of joy for my children and I, and that the sanctity of entertainment that it had provided was breached by this terrible event.
Those of us born in New York City were introduced to the game at an early age. There were hoops in every indoor and outdoor gym. Living a few doors down from us was the City College of New York center who had won the NCAA and NIT tournament in one year, a feat never since duplicated. Phil Jackson, then a reserve player for the New York Knicks, lived in Queens and played pick-up at my elementary school. Everyone in public school had to play and I did. And I stunk, though fleeting accomplishments are burnished into my memory: my 6th grade teacher, Mr. Axelrod, giving me a thumbs up after sinking two foul shots for my only points of the year; sinking the winning layup in overtime to lift the intramural Bayside High School Newspaper team over the Chess Club (OK so they were not physically gifted but they did think two passes ahead). And through family lore: my 70 year old 4 foot 8 inch aunt recounting her brush with basketball greatness: “Lawrence, I got out of the car and was looking at his belt-buckle. I looked up and saw him and almost fell over.” She was describing meeting Wilt Chamberlain, then a bellhop at Kutscher’s Hotel in the Catskills, NY where he played summer ball in between semesters at University of Kansas. But it was fandom for the NBA that refined my love of the game. It was the rise of the NY Knicks in the late 60’s after decades of futility that energized me and the city. My high school buddies going to Madison Square Garden on December, 31, 1968 and watching the likes of Willis Reed and Walt Frazier dismantle the Baltimore Bullets; listening to the Knicks win their first championship on radio in 1970 (not televised in the NYC area back then). Going out west and living in Los Angeles and later San Diego, I came under the Laker spell. A lifelong friend had gone to Michigan State grad school and first informed me of a freshman sensation, Earvin Johnson. As a junior gastroenterologist in a large multispecialty group in LA County, I found a coterie of docs who worshipped the Lakers. One, who had season tickets since the team came from Minneapolis, was especially passionate. “Anytime you need a partner, I’m ready to go,” I pleaded with him as I informed him of his patient’s polyp burden. After a year, I got the call and accompanied him to Showtime in the Forum in Inglewood. We were center court, one row behind Karem Abdul Jabbar’s dad. And then there were 48 minutes of watching Magic Johnson’s craft with no look passes, Jabbar skyhooks and basketball magic that pushed Newtonian physics to its extreme. The day I interviewed for hospital privileges at Whittier Presbyterian hospital was the day the Lakers signed Shaquille O’Neal. I don’t remember any of the interview questions I was asked that day, but I do remember the excitement of an all-star center coming to LA. What followed was joyful hours of watching the Kobe-Shaq and later the Kobe-Gasol Lakers on TV and at Staples Center. Kobe picked up the mantle of Laker greatness and pushed the athletic limits of great basketball. We were treated to over two decades of multiple winning seasons.
Kobe’s greatness extended beyond the court. My son was the recipient of a Kobe “high five” after seeing him leave U.C. Irvine Basketball Practice Facility one summer day 10 years ago. And following in the erudite tradition of great former NBA players, Kobe thought outside the box and was able to deconstruct greatness for the average fan, allowing us mortals a glimpse of a higher level of performance. And so, with a bit of satisfaction, I watched my younger son embrace the Washington Wizards when he went to Georgetown and my older son participate in the well being and fandom of the Miami Heat. Basketball is a team game and mirrors the collective nature of human kind but also rewards individual great talents. We can only imagine what insights were lost with the passing of Kobe Bryant. What my family and I have is the joy and memories of watching the Mamba play the game in such a way that it sketched us a blueprint for life.