LOS ANGELES — DeMar DeRozan is always influenced by Kobe Bryant when he plays basketball.
Every game reminds DeRozan of the impact Bryant had on the NBA and on him. Being in Los Angeles around the anniversary of Bryant’s death this week kept the star’s memory fresh in DeRozan's mind.
Friday was the four-year anniversary of Bryant’s death in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, Calif., a loss that shook the league in 2020. After a loss to the Lakers on Thursday, DeRozan reflected on what Bryant meant to him as a player and person.
“From the moment he entered the league to his last game, everything about him motivated me to become a basketball player,” DeRozan said. “He was my favorite player while I was growing up, a mentor, and someone I looked up to and sought advice from. For me, Kobe meant everything.”
Growing up in Los Angeles during the 1990s, it was impossible to avoid the influence of the Lakers and Kobe Bryant. DeRozan admired Bryant when he was a young player at Compton High School. He participated in Bryant’s camps as a teenager and was given a pair of Bryant’s shoes as a high school senior.
When DeRozan joined the league in 2009 at 20, his connection with Bryant, who was then 31, changed from idol to mentor. Bryant instilled his strong work ethic in DeRozan during offseason training sessions, setting the example for the intense workouts that DeRozan now carries out with young Bulls players in Los Angeles each summer. They competed against each other for seven years before Bryant retired in 2016.
Even now, DeRozan exclusively wears Bryant’s line of shoes during games, serving as a small token of his mentor’s impact on his career.
Players, coaches, and fans across the NBA and WNBA shared memories of Bryant, his daughter Gigi, and the other victims of the helicopter crash on Friday.
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