(Ep008) Mike Sielski: How Kobe Bryant’s Quest for Greatness Began, Why a Box of Lost Tapes Led to His New Book, and How Kobe's Mom Forged the Mamba Mentality
While in his senior year at Lower Merion High School, Kobe Bryant and a friend decided that when he made it to the NBA, his journey would make a great book. So they sat down and recorded hours of audio interviews about Kobe continuing the legacy of his father Joe “Jelly Bean” Bryant, the time he spent in Italy, his mom’s role in creating the Mamba Mentality, and more. Time passed and while Kobe won titles, MVPs, and Olympic gold medals, the tapes gathered dust and the book went unwritten.
More than 20 years later, Mike Sielski got a call from his and Kobe’s mutual friend, telling him about the project and suggesting that he be the one to finish the project. Initially, the tapes were missing but they eventually turned up in a garage and the game was on. Using his experience as a sports reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer, Sielski augmented the Kobe tapes through exclusive interviews with Kobe’s school friends, coaches, and teachers. The result is The Rise: Kobe Bryant and the Pursuit of Immortality, a brilliant microcosm biography that puts you in the halls and on the court at Lower Merion and inside the mind of the most impactful basketball player of his generation.
In this episode, Mike shares:
How Kobe’s mom developed his winning mental approach to the game
What it was like to be handed a treasure trove of Kobe interviews
Why Kobe’s interests in music, literature, and culture fed into his basketball mastery
Which pivotal moments enabled Kobe to go to the NBA straight from high school
How he recreated Kobe’s childhood and high school days
To get your hands on a copy of The Rise, check out Mike’s website, go deeper into the story with the companion podcast, I am Kobe, and follow Mike on Instagram.
