Kobe Bryant Was the Icon I Didn’t Know That I Needed

His Example of Black Achievement Surpassed His NBA Stardom

“Don’t it always seem to go, that you don’t know what you got ’til it’s gone.” — Joni Mitchell.

From the moment I got the news, I was in a state of muted disbelief. Wait… Kobe Bryant… is dead… ? How is that even possible?

I spent the rest of the day talking about his death in passing, with various friends and family as we ate and played cards at my sister’s birthday party. It was sad and shocking, but in the way that most young celebrity deaths are. Selena, Aaliyah, Brandon Lee, Heath Ledger, Nipsey Hussle. I said a few words of respect, and prepared to move on.

But last night, I could hardly sleep. I woke at 4AM and started reading and watching all the news coverage online, all the heartfelt responses from the biggest and brightest in sports and entertainment, all lamenting his loss. And initially, I couldn’t quite explain why his death impacted me so much.

Because here is where I must insist — not merely as a minor footnote but as something like a moral imperative — that I am most decidedly not a fan of the Los Angeles Lakers.

In fact, for most of my formative years, from about middle school until early adulthood, I…