Kobe Bryant and Work Ethic
Posted on December 19, 2013
The following Kobe Bryant story was originally shared by a member of the staff working with the United States national team during the London Olympics. It was translated and republished on Basket Clinic in 2013.
It was around 3:30 in the morning.
I was lying in bed, slowly drifting off to sleep, when my phone rang.
I answered, slightly annoyed.
“Hello, Rob. I hope I’m not disturbing you?”
“What’s up, Kobe?”
“I was just wondering if you could help me with a workout. That’s all.”
I looked at the clock.
It was 4:15 a.m.
“Sure. Meet me at the gym.”
It took me about twenty minutes to get dressed, put on my shoes and leave the hotel.
By the time I arrived and opened the main gym, Kobe was already there.
Alone.
He was soaked in sweat, as if he had just stepped out of a swimming pool.
It was not even five o’clock in the morning.
The Workout
We spent approximately the next 75 minutes working through conditioning exercises.
After that, we went to the weight room, where Kobe completed another 45-minute strength workout.
Then we said goodbye.
He went back onto the court to shoot.
I returned to the hotel and collapsed.
Later That Morning
I had to be back at the gym by 11 a.m.
I woke up tired and exhausted, exactly as you would expect after so little sleep.
Thanks, Kobe.
I grabbed something to eat and headed back to the gym.
I remember what happened next very clearly.
Every member of the national team was there.
The atmosphere was great.
LeBron was talking with Carmelo.
Coach K was explaining something to Kevin Durant.
And on the other side of the court was Kobe.
Alone.
Still shooting.
I walked over and patted him on the back.
“Good workout this morning.”
“What?”
“The conditioning session,” I said.
“Oh. Thank you. I really appreciate it, Rob.”
“So when did you finish?”
“Finish what?” Kobe asked.
“Your shooting. When did you leave?”
“Oh, that. Just now.”
He had wanted to make 800 shots.
And he had only just finished.
What the Story Represents
It is easy for players to talk about wanting to improve.
It is easy to tell other people how serious you are.
It is easy to show everyone how hard you supposedly work.
Actually doing the work is different.
Kobe Bryant’s work ethic helps explain why he became one of the defining players of his generation.
This story is not really about waking up at four o’clock in the morning.
It is about commitment.
It is about continuing after most people would already consider the work finished.
It is about setting a standard for yourself that does not depend on anybody watching.
For basketball players, that may be the most important lesson.
Before telling the world how hard you are working, ask yourself:
How much are you actually doing to become better?
Sometimes the answer is worth more than anything you could post about yourself.
Original Basket Clinic publication: December 19, 2013
Original format: translated quotation/story
Hungarian translation: Dr. Ágoston Nagy
Original sources listed with the 2013 article:
Reddit / NBA discussion featuring the story
Kobe Bryant’s Twitter profile