Коби Браянт

by Roland Lazenby, Роланд Лейзънби

„Просто искам да съм правилният човек – ми каза той, потвърждавайки отново целта си да се превърне в топ играч в НБА. – Не знам как ще го постигна. Но трябва да намеря начин.“

И го направи, въпреки че навремето целта му изглеждаше невероятна. Когато приключи кариерата си през 2016 г., Браянт можеше да погледне назад към цифрите, с които се надпреварваше в двайсетте си сезона, и да обяви, че си е спечелил „място на масата“ на великите. През 2015 г. задмина своя идол Майкъл Джордан и се нареди на трето място в историята при топ реализаторите, само след Карим Абдул Джабар и Карл Малоун. И най-важното е, че Браянт изведе Лейкърс до пет титли в НБА, игра в 18 Мача на звездите и спечели два златни медала от Олимпийски игри.

Лос Анджелис Лейкърс е един от най-бляскавите отбори в спорта и средата, в която Браянт играе, е пикантна и вълнуваща. Провокативни истории – за детството му с изискващ баща, за объркания му и сложен личен живот, за бурните му взаимоотношения с други играчи на терена – всичко това, забъркано с доза баскетболна журналистика, прави тази книга важно и основно четиво за всеки баскетболен фен. - Пъблишърс Уикли

„С прецизността на хирург Роланд Лейзънби прави експертна дисекция на живота на най-вдъхновяващия това поколение баскетболист. Какво кара името Коби Браянт да кънти толкова време? Лейзънби прави със силата на репортерското си перо дълбок разрез на постиженията, изпитанията, трудностите и делата на Браянт.
Джонатън Ейбрамс, автор на книгата „Boys Among Men“

„След излизането на книгата „Господарят на шоуто“ е крайно време да признаем на автора Роланд Лейзънби това, в което се превърна – най-добрият спортен биограф на нашето време. След възхитителната биография „Майкъл Джордан“ той отново е сътворил невероятно изследване, прекрасно написана биография на тази енигматична суперзвезда на Лейкърс. Лейзънби се издигна в разредения въздух. Той едновременно възхищава с фактите и създава нетърпение да продължим да четем.“
Питър Голенбок, автор на десет бестселъра в класацията на „Ню Йорк Таймс“

„Лейзънби разказва историята на Браянт добре… Тази книга със сигурност дълги години ще остане най-добрата биография на Коби Браянт.“

Genres: Sports, Biography, Basketball, Nonfiction, Audiobook, Biography Memoir, Memoir

632 pages, Paperback

First published October 25, 2016

About the author

Roland Lazenby is an American sportswriter and educator.

Lazenby has written more than five dozen nonfiction books, mainly about basketball and American football. He has also contributed articles to magazines and newspapers.

Lazenby's book Bull Run! was named Sports Book of the Year for 1997 by the Independent Publishers Association.

Lazenby studied at Virginia Military Institute and Hollins University, and has been a member of Virginia Tech's Department of Communication and Radford University's School of Communication. A group of students from his media writing class compiled the book April 16th: Virginia Tech Remembers (2007), an account of the Virginia Tech massacre. Lazenby served as editor.

In 2005, Lazenby and Andrew Mager created Planet Blacksburg, a student organization that focuses on new media, journalism, and publishing.

Reviews

[Ben Azadi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Here are my to 3 takeaways from the book.

#1 Be Obsessed or Be Average. Kobe was obsessed with reaching his potential. What is your potential? Become obsessed with it!

#2 Be a Free Thinker. Kobe didn't follow the thinking of the masses; instead he created his own path. Be careful when you follow the masses, sometimes the "M" is silent. ;-)

#3 Turn Setbacks Into Stepping Stones. Kobe never let an injury, or any other setback dissuade him from living up to his potential. Remember that it isn't about the setback, it's about the GETBACK.

[Preston M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW. What a book. I knew Kobe was legendary, but I didn't know he was this legendary! Man, I loved reading this book. I'm a huge basketball fan, so it makes sense. The stories of some NBA players is just so great. So inspiring. Hard work always pays off. As they all say, #trusttheprocess #thatslowgrind. I recommend this book for all basketball fans.

[Selena Haskins · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've read many biographies in my day, and especially about sports figures, and this one tops being the worse of them all. How did this book receive 5-star reviews is beyond me! Then again, Roland Lazenby is a respectable writer, so I think his proteges gifted him 5-stars for GP. This is by far, NOT a biography but a history book about Philadelphia basketball leagues, history of Lakers, drafts, but VERY little about Kobe Bryant besides a plethora of basketball stats. This book doesn't tell you anything you don't already know about Kobe. For instance, we all know he's an arrogant juggernaut of a ball player, and Lazenby simply provides justification for Kobe's narcissist behavior. The title of the book, "Showboat" was, however, very fitting, because the book doesn't go into any other details about Kobe's life outside of the basketball court. Lazenby obviously never interviewed Kobe or his family, and if he did, he received very little information and decided to wing it.

For a biography, we don't even know what Kobe's favorite drink is or favorite color. Instead, we're inundated with pages of useless narrative information about Philly and Italy. I was also overwhelmed by the repetitiveness of the inclusion of quotes from coaches, teammates, and naysayers albeit co-signing to Kobe being a showboat, really now? How shocking! (sarcasm).

[Luca Masera · Rating 3 out of 5]

Premesso che non tutti i libri sportivi possono essere Open, Showboat - La vita di Kobe Bryant è una lettura sicuramente godibile ma lontana anni luce dall'essere un qualcosa di indimenticabile: tanto contorno, tanti dati asettici, tante informazioni messe in ordine in modo per lo più impersonale… ma a mio avviso davvero poco su Kobe Bryant che, pur essendo sempre presente, resta spesso sullo sfondo di quello che di lui viene narrato.



Tanto per capirci… Kobe nasce dopo circa 200 pagine incentrate sulla figura (per quanto interessante) di suo padre. E non viene mai, mai, mai intervistato direttamente: le sue parole sono sempre riportate da interviste o dai discorsi di colleghi, allenatori, giornalisti, ecc. Altre cose che non ho gradito – ma gusto personale – sono state da un lato le tante ripetizioni su alcuni passaggi (come per allungare un po’ il brodo) e dall'altro la rapidità con cui invece venivano trattati taluni passaggi fondamentali della sua vita sportiva e non.



Pochi i dettagli sugosi in grado di trasformare una biografia sportiva in un romanzo epico sullo sport o sullo sportivo: la sensazione complessiva è quella di aver letto un libro ordinario incentrato sulla vita di una persona fuori dall'ordinario.

[Claude · Rating 3 out of 5]

How you evaluate this book comes down to this question: Does Kobe Bryant really warrant 550+ pages of detailed biography? Lazenby's Jordan biography is much better than his work on Kobe and that's not an MJ bias speaking. Despite Kobe's drama-filled career and criminal accusation/trial, this book lags toward the end even though it is riveting in spots, especially early on. In fact, the most compelling portions are about Kobe's fascinating father, Joe, and the insights into Kobe's childhood and family dynamics. I think die-hard NBA heads will enjoy this book and if you're a Kobe stan, definitely read it. I was really surprised Lazenby didn't spend more time asserting a case for Kobe's NBA legacy.

Some of the most interesting insights:
- Kobe's distrust and berating of teammates was a pattern from age 8/9.
- Kobe memorized most of the triangle offense from watching the Bulls so when Phil Jackson came to LA he already knew most of the motion and berated teammates for their lack of familiarity to the new system, asking something to the effect of, "Did you guys watch the Bulls?" His basketball mind and study really was prodigious.
- Kobe dealt with immense behind the scenes drama with his parents during much of his career
- I had no clue Kobe's dad was 1) really good and 2) never lived up to his talent and 3) ended up in a scandal that tainted his career...Kobe obviously did the same but found a way to "heal" his image

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

This will probably become the definitive biography of Kobe Bryant. This book was a very well researched book. At the same time this was an incredibly laborious read. The prose was longwinded and his use of sources was clumsy. At some points he seemed to be citing sources just for the purpose of giving them their chance to have their say. The pacing of the book was also strange. He spent a large amount of time on Bryant's family background and his high school years but sped through the years after the Shaq days and his sexual assault trial. It was almost as if Lazenby lost steam and just wrapped up the book as soon as possible.

[Huzaifa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although Showboat and Michael Jordan: The Life are by the same author, and about two very similar subjects, I found Showboat to be a much better read. I have been fascinated by Kobe's life since he wrote his retirement letter in a poem, "Dear Basketball", and reveled in that fascination in this book.

The part I found most interesting was how well Kobe was able to compartmentalize his life. He cut off his entire family, he faced one of the biggest legal trials a professional athlete has faced, but he did not let it influence his play even one bit. Although my opinion of him is not as high as it was before reading this book, his dedication to the game is admirable.

[Przemek Kotowski · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am really disappointed with this book. Poorly researched, almost nobody from close Kobe's circle is interviewed for this book, and most of the content is cited from press or TV interviews. You won't learn anything new about Kobe himself. Nothing more about his personality, hobbies, or his life philosophy. I'm really surprised by the high rating this book was given by goodreads community.

[Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed every particle of this read. Some people think that people are born great. No, that is not the case.

You may be born with talent, but as Kobe Bryant showed, you have to put in the uncountable, unfathomable amount of work every. single. day for every. single. year, over the span of decades.

[Stan Vlieg · Rating 3 out of 5]

R.I.P. Kobe

I want to make it clear that the rating has nothing to do with my opinion on Kobe but purely reflected on the poorly written method by the author.

If you want to read up on Kobe i think i would advise you to wait on the coming books. Surely there will be many soon. This book had a lot of quantity but sadly not a lot of quality. You can learn some interesting things reading this but the heapload of pages should have done a lot more.

Reading the sad news yesterday made me write this little review. Mostly i don't want to elaborate on books i am not so keen on but now i felt i was a little obligated to do so.

Mamba out..

2.5 stars

[Stevie DeNucci · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mamba Mentality
With over 30 years experience interviewing NBA players, coaches, and staff members, Roland Lazenby has become a best-selling author of biographies such as Michael Jordan: The Life and Jerry West: The Life and Legend of a Basketball Icon. With titles such as these to his name, Roland Lazenby places himself in a qualified position to write Showboat: The Life of Kobe Bryant. Lazenby’s Showboat: The Life of Kobe Bryant focuses on the development of Kobe’s career, being raised by Joe Bryant, and overcoming obstacles. Showboat: The Life of Kobe Bryant persuades its readers that hard work and dedication will pay off by displaying Kobe Bryant’s whole life and development in the NBA.
The journey that Roland Lazenby’s Showboat: The Life of Kobe Bryant brings its reader on begins with a young Kobe Bean Bryant. His parents Joe and Pam gave their son the name Kobe Bean after pondering the perfect name for a while. Kobe’s middle name Bean comes from his father Joe’s nickname growing up and in the NBA, Jellybean. By Kobe’s freshman year in high school, he had shot up to be well over six feet tall and was thin, and agile. Throughout his high school basketball career at Lower Merion High School, Kobe began to gain some real recognition from very well noted basketball schools across the country. Teammate and childhood friend Robby Schwartz “remembered Kobe collecting his recruiting letters from the main office at the school and treating them dismissively” (Lazenby 158). Kobe dismissively treating his recruitment letters did not pose any problems for the young man though, as he opted to skip the collegiate level of play and enter the NBA draft right after he graduated from high school. Kobe Bryant was drafted to the NBA in 1996 by the Charlotte Hornets and then traded to the Los Angeles Lakers. It was there in LA where Kobe found the place he would call home for his extensive and successful NBA career. A place where he would go on to play twenty seasons for while also bringing the Lakers five NBA championship titles. But everything didn’t come easy, Kobe busted his tail day after day, week after week, year after year to become the astounding legend he is today.
The first way Showboat: The Life of Kobe Bryant proves its central theme is through the development of its main character, Kobe Bean Bryant. The bottomline was that Kobe wanted to be great, and he wouldn’t let anything slow his progression down. From the time he was tearing up the high school courts to the time he was owning the NBA courts, Kobe worked everyday at his play. Kobe’s Lower Merion High School basketball coach said in an interview regarding Kobe that “it was his willingness that struck people time and time again. Bryant’s obvious task was to prove himself, over and over and over again” (Lazenby 100). In other words, Kobe’s work ethic amazed the people around him as he would work hard to prove himself every chance he could. By using the word “willingness” Lazenby further proves Kobe’s drive and motivation to be great. Kobe’s hard work and dedication the game of basketball supports Lazenby’s central theme fully as Kobe is now regarded as one of the greatest players in NBA history.
Another way Roland Lazenby proves his central theme is through the development of a minor character, more specifically, Joe Bryant. Joe Bryant was Kobe’s father and mentor. Joe “Jellybean” Bryant also played in the NBA for the Philadelphia 76ers. Joe’s incredible skill at basketball helped teach young Kobe the basic and fundamentals of the game. One way Joe and Kobe would practice is by constantly playing one-on-one in their driveway. Pam Bryant recalled Joe and Kobe playing in the driveway for hours at a time every chance they had. But Joe had one thing in mind and that was to improve Kobe as a player. Joe was a former NBA player with tremendous skill and would refuse to go easy on Kobe as a teenager trying to improve everyday. Pam stated that “each day, Kobe was growing as a player, which meant that Joe became increasingly physical in trying to hold on to his dominance. The resulting busted lips and shouting matches would draw an irate Pam out into the yard to break up the pushing and shoving” (Lazenby 99). By using phrases such as “busted lips” and “shouting matches” Lazenby displays how intensely and hard Joe and Kobe would play. Joe would cause Kobe to work extraordinarily hard as not every high school kid could keep up with the 6’9” Joe Bryant. Joe Bryant’s development as Kobe’s mentor and father throughout story played a large part in Kobe’s life, as Joe worked hard day in and day out with Kobe to better his son’s play.
One more way Roland Lazenby proves his theme is by the central conflict of the book. The central conflict of the book was for Kobe Bean Bryant to make it to the NBA and be great. Well, Kobe did just that but had to work very hard for it. Kobe’s intensity was marvelled at by the people around him. Before the NBA, Kobe played on an AAU basketball team coached by a man named Sam Rines. In a 2015 interview regarding Kobe’s play on the AAU team, Rines stated “Kobe was a showman. Kobe on stage was probably the most focused kid I’ve ever seen on the court. No bullshit, no taking it easy. He’s not going to smile at you. He’s going to kill you from bell to bell, no mercy” (Lazenby 123). By using the phrase “No bullshit” Sam Rines directly shows how serious he is about how determined and focused Kobe is. Also, “He’s going to kill you from bell to bell” further explains how hard Kobe would work to accomplish his dreams of one day joining the NBA. Kobe then went on to having an amazingly successful career as a Los Angeles Laker. Lazenby further proves that hard work pays off as he displays Kobe’s hard work throughout his come up as a young rising star.
Kobe went on to be an eighteen-time All-Star, five-time NBA champ, scorer of 81 points in one game, and MVP of the league in the 2007-2008 season. Without a doubt, Roland Lazenby proves in his book Showboat: The Life of Kobe Bryant that hard work and dedication pays off and persuades its readers by providing tons of credible evidence. I would personally recommend Showboat: The Life of Kobe Bryant by Roland Lazenby to high school students that are passionate fans of the NBA. I would give this book a 10 rating as it never seemed to lull me to sleep, rather it had me wanting to read more about the great Kobe Bryant and his work ethic.

[Tyler Hoffman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible inside access to Kobe’s childhood and playing career. Written well before 2020 so didn’t cover Kobe’s tragic helicopter accident.

First 300 pages covering his childhood in Italy and Philadelphia were 6 stars if I had an extra one. Next 400 pages covering his pro career were more like 4 stars, but still quite good.

Main takeaways:
- Kobe’s work ethic was unprecedented and personality defining. Even guys who worked with Jordan said there’s never been anyone like Kobe.
- He decided he wanted to be the best player ever at a young age and then never took his mind off that goal. He was just relentless and ruthless in everything he did.
- Players and coaches hated Kobe for most of his career. He didn’t get along with anyone until much later when he began softening up a bit. Everyone respected the hell out of him, but he was never well liked in the locker room.
- His relationship was particularly strained with Shaq and Phil Jackson. He eventually reconciled with both of them, so much so that he won another two championships with Jackson when he came back as the Lakers coach.
- On the same theme, he totally shut his parents out of his life early in his pro career over disagreements about money and his wife. They never reconciled.
- He also shut out Shelly Smith who broke the story of his sexual assault charge. Interestingly enough he reconciled with her about 10 years later when she was recovering from cancer and approached him for an interview.

[Albert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Incredibly thorough book: the definitive biography of an iconic celebrity athlete of our time. This book reads well for both the diehard Kobe/Lakers fan and the casual sports fan, just enough basketball technical and contract talk and Lakers drama/analysis not to lose depth, but easy to read and friendly enough to non-basketball aficionados. Not just a blow-by-blow account of every playoff game that Kobe played in, although the most memorable games revealed fascinating background and postgame analysis. There is depth, breadth, analysis of every major basketball moment for Kobe, along with the background and major figures in shaping those moments and the international icon.

The author uses Kobe Bryant's early life to reveal his unparalleled work ethic and borderline psychotic drive to be great from a very young age. There is a lot of great oral history from his former coaches and teammates during his childhood in Italy to foreshadow his extreme expectations of teammates and his alphadog mentality for years to come.

I enjoyed the fascinating background around key figures in Kobe's life: Joe Bryant, Sonny Vaccaro, Jerry West, Phil Jackson, and many more. Going indepth on these figures helped explain the context of Kobe's life at different points. I loved the interviews of former assistant coaches, teammates, agents, high school rivals, etc. to describe Kobe's killer instinct mentality on the basketball court in his early years.

Some of the more memorable oral commentary came later from J.A. Adande, Ric Bucher, Tex Winter, Derek Fisher, Shelley Smith, and Rudy Garciduenas. They provide the oral history in many chapters revealing some of the darker sides of Kobe Bryant.

Lakers fans will get a kick out of reminiscing the success, drama, and dysfunction of the organization, while also learning a lot from the behind-the-scenes looks at key points in recent Laker history. Kobe's relationship with Shaquille O'Neal in the early years is described in full page-turning detail to show that their conflict started well before they won their first ring together.

The author doesn't pull up any punches describing Kobe and Phil Jackson's declining relationship during and after the three-peat. Even more remarkable was the tale of how their relationship mended enough to win two more championships. All in all, the author presents clearly how Kobe's reclusiveness did not mesh with Shaq's gregariousness and sensitivities or Jackson's bravado.

The tragedy of Kobe's becoming a global icon came in his personal life, particularly his estrangement from his family. Meeting Vanessa Laine led to his relationship with his immediate family to take a turn largely because of clashing personalities, power, and money.

On his off-the-court life, there is one flaw I found with this book, and it's a pretty big one. I really feel there was not enough on the sexual assault case in Eagle, Colorado. Even if the reader were to be on "Kobe's side" in the sexual assault case, its impact on the world's perception of Kobe and how it changed his legacy is undeniable. This is the first very public sexual assault case in sports in the cable television era long before the "Me Too" era. Even aside from the pain it caused his relationship with his wife Vanessa, Kobe's squeaky-clean image takes a nosedive, his celebrity becomes polarizing. Yes, the book mentions that his image is tarnished, but it's not convincing.

Instead, the sexual assault case becomes reduced and constantly referred to as Kobe's "legal troubles" throughout the second half of the book. It seems that the lesson about the case for the interviewees in the book was on how Kobe was still able to perform at a high-level despite the "inconvenience" of flying between Colorado and Los Angeles during the season. I was disappointed by this characterization of the sexual assault case, that we barely get to know the alleged victim's point of view, but probably even more so that it wasn't analyzed as deeply in shaping Kobe's legacy as, say, his Adidas deal did.

Still, for nearly all of the book, I loved reading it. What I appreciated most about the book was that more than half of the book was devoted to Kobe's upbringing and early NBA years before his first championship. There's a whole history behind his father Joe Bryant, of Philadelphia prep basketball, of Nike vs. Adidas, of Jerry West, of Phil Jackson, of Michael Jordan, of the Laker organization, and so on. All of this context to help explain Kobe Bryant may not appeal to the reader who just want to read about Kobe's basketball exploits, but it paints the full picture for understanding Kobe's basketball career.

Finally, the last chapter... was hard to read. Don't get me wrong, it was fascinating to go through the post-championship years and the endless cycle of post-Jackson coaches. Kobe's relentless pursuit of greatness is on full display again in the midst of his body breaking down from overuse.

But I so badly didn't want this book to end. His retirement tour, his optimism for his life after basketball, his turning focus towards his daughters, his reconciliation with a reporter, his desire to take on writing, his "Dear Basketball" poem...

Knowing that Kobe Bryant's life ends shortly after this book's publication makes the last chapter so... heartbreaking. I won't give it away, but the way the book ends after his last NBA game was very sad, in light of what we know will happen on Sunday, January 26th, 2020.

Thanks for the joys, the ups, the downs, and the thrills, Black Mamba. Rest in peace, Kobe.

[Stella Radojcic · Rating 5 out of 5]

indisputably the hardest working athlete of all time, i mean, like fucking insane my god, so inspirational. truly an incredible story of some one who had the drive and determination that appears so rarely.

[Sam Montgomery · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once again in elementary school but it was goated

[Ian Strong · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was good and informative but something about the writing style just felt like it was making the same points over and over again. There’s only so much “Kobe was great and this is how great he is” in between the actual information. I feel like some chapters and topics just went on for too long and just kept circling back to the same ideas. Didn’t make me want to keep picking it up and reading it. Good info, not great style.

[Damon Rosenberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

For any sports fan, this book is an absolute must-read. Everyone knows the name Kobe Bryant, yet we knew so little about him. He was always an enigma, this unique force of nature who was a basketball god. Lazenby does an incredible job at diving deep into Kobe’s background; how his father’s NBA experience shaped his own, how living in Italy gave him this “outsider” status that stuck with him throughout his career, and so much more. The sheer depth of research and knowledge was just incredible, and really helped provide a more full image of Kobe Bryant. I think my favorite part about the book is how little it focuses on Kobe’s play on the court. Sure, there are a fair number of play-by-play moments and such, but this book focused so much on the relationships (or lack thereof) that Kobe maintained throughout his life, and how that shaped both the player and the man. By the book’s final pages, I found myself in tears thinking about how tragically his life was cut short, as Lazenby set up how Kobe’s “second act” would unfold after his retirement. Overall, a tremendous read and I would highly recommend.

[Brandice · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'll start off by stating that I'm a huge basketball fan (maybe that's a given when you choose to read a 500+ page bio on an NBA star). I've always admired Kobe Bryant for his dedication to his craft and for standing by his actions/feelings (whether or not others agreed with them).

I previously read Lazenby's book "Michael Jordan, The Life" which I also loved, as I'm a long time MJ fan. With such positive feelings about the MJ book, I was skeptical that I'd like this one as much. But, I did. I learned a lot about Kobe that I didn't know, and again as I continued reading, and upon finishing the book, I was fascinated by his willpower, discipline and dedication. It's inspiring.

The book was very thorough and covers Kobe's life from childhood, through his high school playing days, and full NBA career up to his 2016 retirement. It was a great read - I could read Roland Lazenby's sports writing all day.

[Mihály Szabó · Rating 3 out of 5]

A G-ADAM kiadó nagy piros pontot érdemel a sportkönyvek (pláne a kosaras témájú könyvek) kiadásáért, még ha van is hova fejlődniük. A vaskos Kobe-életrajz impozáns mennyiségű interjúra és forrásra építve mutat be egy valóban figyelemre méltó karriert. Ugyanakkor a mélység helyett inkább a felszín rendkívül alapos bemutatását éreztem a szövegen, helyenként zavaró aránytalanságokkal. Minek 100 oldalon keresztül részletezni Joe Bryant karrierjét és életútját? Persze meghatározó a papa befolyása Kobe életére, de ez akkor is túlzás szerintem. Szintén elviseltem volna kevesebb háttér-információt a cipő- és egyéb reklámszerződésekről (és az azokat tető alá hozó ügynökökről), bár biztos van, akit ez hoz lázba (és valószínűleg az ebben illetékes források adták a legbővebb interjúkat, a volt Lakers-szertárossal egyetemben, akit ugyancsak döbbenetesen sokat idéz a könyv).

Kosárlabda-rajongóként érdekes olvasni egy-egy meccs statisztikáit, de egy idő után ezek kissé összemosódnak, ráadásul többé-kevésbé emlékszem Kobe pályafutására, így az adatok olvasása túl sok újdonsággal nem szolgált. Nemcsak az érződik a könyvön, hogy maga a főszereplő nem járult hozzá tevőlegesen az elkészítéséhez, de a sokszor hangsúlyozott zárkózottsága is visszaköszön abban, hogy a legtöbb idézett barát, kolléga, ismerős, újságíró, csapattárs visszaemlékezései bizonyos mélységnél ritkán engednek mélyebb betekintést Kobe életének intimebb részleteibe. Kicsit olyan hatást tett rám a könyv, mint a Last Dance sorozat: végig élveztem, de több „kulisszák mögötti” sztorit vártam, és összességében hagyott némi hiányérzetet. Az utolsó fejezet mondjuk kiemelkedett a többi közül, azon szórakoztam a legjobban. Jordan wizardsos szereplésének minősítését viszont nehezményezem, szerintem messze túl szigorú a szerző ítélete, de hát nem kell mindenben egyetértenünk.

Ízléses a könyv borítója, és a fordításra sem lehet nagyon sok panasz, látszik, hogy a témában jártas (bár a fordításban kevésbé tapasztalt) párosra bízták a magyarítást. Ugyanakkor kénytelen vagyok részletezni a magyar kiadás problémáit, még ha ezek nem is rontják el teljesen az olvasmányélményt.
- Rengeteg a központozási hiba, elsősorban az idézőjelek használata, illetve az idézeten belüli idézetek jelölése van következetesen elrontva.
- Bántóan sok az egybe- és különírással kapcsolatos hiba is (hogyha vs. hogy ha, résztvevő vs. részt vevő, „mégha”, „újkeletű” stb.).
- Nem túl sok, de akad hibás elválasztás és félregépelés is.
- Akadnak megkérdőjelezhető fordítói megoldások, szerintem szerencsésebb lenne például a „szabadügynök” helyett „szabadon igazolható játékos”, „fizetési sapka” helyett pedig „fizetési plafon”; továbbá kissé sokalltam az angolul meghagyott fogalmakat (drive-and-kick, timeout, guard), de a szakszavak fordítására nagy általánosságban nem lehet panasz.
- Érthetetlenül sokszor „merengett” egy-egy visszaemlékező – vajon az angolban ugyanilyen stílusértékű szó szerepelt ezeken a helyeken, vagy csak a fordítást akarták színesíteni?
- Hasznosak a viszonylag gyakori szerkesztői magyarázatok (különösen a laikusoknak), de nem teljesen következetes, milyen mélységig magyaráznak (például ha a „festék” szót igen, a „könyök” kifejezést miért nem?).
- Egyéb következetlenségek is előfordulnak, Phil Jackson könyvére például egyszer simán „Utolsó szezon”-ként hivatkozik a könyv, legközelebb pedig már (helyesebben) így: „Az utolsó szezon (The Last Season)”.

A hibák ellenére bárkinek ajánlani tudom a könyvet, akit érdekel a megszállottan munkamániás Bryant pályafutása. Kár, hogy a kosárlabda utáni életéről már nem szól a kötet, és persze még nagyobb kár, hogy ez az élet tragikusan hamar véget ért – pedig biztosan megtöltött volna még egy ilyen vastag könyvet a második karrierje is.

[Matt Wolo · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are not maximizing your potential to be the greatest at what you do, then there is no reason for you to be doing it. This what the mindset of Kobe Bean Bryant. Showboat: The Life of Kobe Bryant does a great job of going deeper into Kobe’s life and family around him that impacted the way he approached basketball and life in general. Kobe’s mindset was to be a relentless, merciless work horse. He had this killer instinct that is only seen in the greatest basketball players of all time such as Michael Jordan himself. It seems as if this instinct was present from the time he was a young boy. His family played a huge role in this as they were involved in his life a great amount for example, “Team Bryant” which was the families plan to stay involved in Kobe’s life when he did make it to the NBA. However, this book at times also did seem to go into too much detail about certain aspects and people that influenced his life such as the history of the Philadelphia basketball leagues. It seems as if the in depth information on those leagues could have been cut down or possibly even left out at certain points.

I agree with the responses to the book that say that if you love Kobe this is a good read. I am a huge fan of Kobe and have studied his game for quite some time now. The book provides insight into how his mentality came to be from a young age and aspects outside of basketball as well which is great. However, I disagree with responses that say this book does not give insight to parts of his life that were not known before. The book is filled with a plethora of aspects I did not know of before such as the life of Kobe’s father who has a huge impact on his life. Although at times it was too much detail, it is still new and necessary to understanding Kobe Bryant’s life.

I do wonder if Kobe did not have the mindset he had, how good would he have really been? I do not think he would be as great as he was. The work he put in was mainly due to the fact that he was so intense about being the greatest he could be, but without all the work he put in he would not be as skilled as he was.

This book gave me a deeper insight on the life of Kobe Braynt and taught me knew parts of his life that I did not know before. The book overall was solid and is definitely a great read if you want to get more insight into Kobe Bryant.

[Nathanael Eaves · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I could give this book 3.75 stars I would.

What this book does well?

- I enjoyed the author going into good detail about Bryant’s lineage. His father (Jelly Bean Bryant) being a former NBA player and the struggles he went through eventually spilled into Kobe’s life which is what lead them to Italy. This was a bit of a surprise but a nice one none the less
- I also think the author does a great job of providing insight into how Kobe came to be and how his mindset eventually became the driving part of his success but also a major contributing factor to some of his failures. The time Kobe spent in Italy, to his adolescent years in Philly, these would lay the foundation for his top tier work ethic but also how he would often alienate himself from not only his team but from his family and really the world.
- Lastly there’s a section of the book where the famous picture of Kobe sitting in the shower with the championship trophy with the jacket and hat staring into space in almost a trance like state (Look it up on google it’s pretty popular). The author explains the context behind this moment and the challenges he went through physically, emotionally, and personally. This explanation of this photo kind of made me a Kobe fan by the end of this book.

What this book misses on?
- Unfortunately the author was limited in what he could reveal because the one person who could provide the greatest insight about Kobe Bryant, is Kobe Bryant and Kobe was no where in this book. It leaves the reader with speculation of what really happened but never knowing what concretely happened in the important moments of Kobe’s life. How he felt when feuding with Phil and Shaq. Or his emotions during the sexual assault case. Or even the shift in mindset as his body started to decline. If Kobe was involved I could easily see this book being 5 stars, but as it stands this book does a great job of giving you the environmental context surrounding Kobe Bryant, and less about the inner workings of the polarizing man.

For me this book is somewhere between a 3.5-4 stars, so i settled on 3.75. If you made it this far into the review thanks for listening!

[Grzegorz Wachna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Książka, którą dość ciężko mi ocenić, wydaje mi się, że nie można jej wprost zestawiać z innymi, głównie dlatego, że jest to biografia. Muszę powiedzieć jednak jedno, obraz Kobego, który miałem w głowie był mocno zakłamany. Znałem go jako nieustępliwego zwycięzcę, a nie trudnego w relacjach, emocjonalnie odciętego człowieka z poważnymi zarzutami na koncie.

Bohater wielu odcieni szarości

Kobe Bryant jest jednym z największych talentów koszykarskich, jakie kiedykolwiek stąpały po Ziemi, co do tego nie ma wątpliwości. Sprawiło to, że chciałem go lepiej poznać już lata temu, gdy koszykówka była moim największym hobby. Z czasem to jednak się trochę zmieniło, a książka Lazenbiego czekała grzecznie na półce.

Muszę przyznać, że to, jakim tytanem pracy był Kobe, zrobi wrażenie na każdym. Gra pomimo bólu, treningi, gdy wszyscy inni jeszcze śpią, ciągła wola walki. Oczywiście przełożyło się to na ogromne osiągnięcia tego zawodnika, ale o tym już po prostu wiedziałem. Książka za to pomogła mi zobaczyć tę postać z trochę innej strony.

Po pierwsze to gigantyczne ego Bryanta, czuł się lepszy, wybrany, wyjątkowy, naprawdę ciężki do znoszenia charakter. Do tego przez większość swojej kariery bardzo niechętnie dzielący się piłką, wszyscy mu powtarzali, że musi więcej podawać. Sama sprawa z Kolorado, gdzie został oskarżony o gwałt, a sam przyznał się do zdrady żony, też sprawia, że postać traci w oczach. Do tego możemy dorzucić homofobiczny język i konflikty w relacjach z rodziną.

Mimo tego wszystkiego nie sposób jest go nie szanować, za konsekwencję w dążeniu do celu, zaangażowanie i ciężką pracę, jaką włożył w to, żeby dostać się na sam szczyt. Książka nie sprawiła, że czuję do Kobego większą sympatię, ale pozwoliła mi naprawdę dobrze poznać zarówno jego historię, jak i dzieje Lakersów z tamtych lat

[Blue Morse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sobering read. Not just because of the tragic loss of Kobe and Gigi in 2020 but due to the way in which Kobe viciously removed his mom and dad, who had been so instrumental in his upbringing, from every aspect of his life and career.

However, the unrelenting drive and dedication of Mamba glows in Lazenbys’s book, which was a tough one for me to put down.

Favorite Quotes:
“He sees learning as empowering. He listens very intently … could you imagine what the would look like if everybody lived that way?”

“Kobe was probably the first loud assassin … assassins are usually quiet. But he told you he was coming at you, and you still couldn’t do anything about it.”

“He played like every game was his last, every workout was going to be his last. He would outwill people.”

“Rupture had become a constant refrain in Kobe Bryant’s life, which meant that mending was, too. And rehab. And recovery. He embraced them all.”

Kobe focused on “the easy stuff… him winning all the sprints, him being the hardest worker on the team, him getting up in the faces of his teammates, holding them accountable.”

[Nikolay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this book.

Having followed Kobe Bryant's career in depth (10+ years) this book still managed to reveal to me a lot of details that I hadn't known about him. Most notable were all the interpersonal and family stories and situations that were revealed - especially those early on in his life and career.

What I also liked about the book is that besides documenting all the well known achievements and notable moments of Kobe's life it also reveals how even the greats of the greats have dark moments and chapters in their lifes and really goes deeper than what the mainstream media has covered. This ultimately acts as a reminder to us all that no matter our efforts to act as noble as possible and to the best of our intentions, mistakes will happen, even huge ones and sh*t will absolutely hit the fan at some point in time in our lifes. And our idols are not flawless. But no matter what - we can still get through that and reach newer and greater heights.

It really is a story of passion, redemption and celebration.

[Barret · Rating 5 out of 5]

I give this book five out of five stars. I really enjoyed this book because I am a huge fan of Kobe and love his work ethic. I love reading books like this because I can learn about things I am passionate about from people I look up to. Another thing I liked about this book is that you can apply it to your own life in anything you do. I really enjoy watching documentaries about legends like Mike and Kobe, so this is right up my alley. I really enjoyed diving into Kobe’s mind and his life.
There isn’t really anything that I didn’t like about this book. I liked reading about his mindset before games and workouts. Even outside of basketball. If there was anything I had to change about this book, it would be adding more information about his mindset going into regular games as well as in the most important games.

[Steve McFarland · Rating 4 out of 5]

all warm and happy in the holiday glow, with Joe and Kobe out in the driveway, both too old for one-on-one, but maybe a little H-O-R-S-E would do just fine. And, oh my, just imagine the trash talk...

One of my favorite basketball players of all time

His Dad from the same neighborhood I came from, used to get tickets every time he came to Philly

A true testament to the adage that in this game you can never win first they love you, then they hate you then they love you again.

Philly Legend

Gone Too Soon 🐐

[Nick Carrico · Rating 4 out of 5]

this is definitely a 4.5. A really good biography that taught me more about Kobe, and why he was the way that he was. My only complaint is that I thought it spent too much time in the past explaining Joe Bryant, Philly, and his early career. I enjoyed it to a degree because I didn’t know much about Kobe then, but I felt like covering the “24” Kobe was rushed compared to everything else. Overall though I definitely enjoyed it. Would recommend.

[detectiveal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Μια αναλυτική και μακροσκελής περιγραφή της ιστορίας της ζωής του αμφιλεγόμενου μα εμβληματικού μπασκετμπολίστα, με εκτενείς αναφορές στην οικογένειά του, τις καταβολές του, τις ιδιοτροπίες του, και πάνω απ' όλα στο ακατάβλητο πείσμα του για διάκριση. Η θριαμβευτική αθλητική του πορεία επισκιάστηκε πολλάκις από σκάνδαλα και μικρότητες, αλλά αν μένει ένα πράγμα από αυτό το ανάγνωσμα είναι η εργατικότητα που διέκρινε τον Κόμπι και τον οδήγησε με μαθηματική ακρίβεια στην κορυφή του αθλήματος που με τόση τρέλα αγαπούσε.

[Charles Weeks · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is basically an autobiography of Kobe Bryant's life, starting from his childhood to him retiring from basketball. If you are a big fan of basketball and/or Kobe then I recommend it. If you aren't then you may find this book boring and/or uninteresting. I really enjoyed it though and found it to be an interesting read because I'm a big fan of Kobe and I'm a fan of basketball in general!

[György Szabó · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nagyon tetszett a könyv, remek a fordítás. A legjobb benne az, hogy az ember tényleg beleláthat, mi emelte ki Kobet a tömegből. Hogy nála jobban senki sem hajtott, és a vele született tehetséget embertelen mennyiségű edzésmunkával csiszolta tökélyre. Ha valamit hiányolok, akkor az még több személyes sztori a környezetéből, a csapattársaitól. Pedig hát így sem rövid a könyv, de én akár még tovább is olvastam volna.