Kobe Bryant Quotes

“The topic of leadership is a touchy one. A lot of leaders fail because they don't have the bravery to touch that nerve or strike that chord. Throughout my years, I haven't had that fear.”

“There's been a lot of talk of me being a one-man show but that's simply not the case. We win games when I score 40 points and we've won when I score 10.”

“I'm more than comfortable just sitting back and scoring 21, 22 points and getting 10, 11 assists. It's just a matter of the pieces that you have around you and what you can do to elevate everybody else.”

“One person can control the tempo of a game, can completely alter the momentum of a series.”

“My parents are my backbone. Still are. They're the only group that will support you if you score zero or you score 40.”

“Christmas morning, I'm going to open presents with my kids. I'm going to take pictures of them opening the presents. Then I'm going to come to the Staples Center and get ready to work.”

“What people see on court is another side of me; it's not me.”

“The people who truly know me know what I'm like.”

“I'm not the most patient of people.”

“It's hard for me to grasp the concept of somebody being nervous when I'm talking to them.”

“I don't talk trash often, but when I do, I go for the jugular.”

“I love going one-on-one with someone. That's what I do. I've never lost.”

“Magic has five championships. I have five championships. I'm pretty sure we both know what we're doing.”

“It never bothered me when people would say, "You only win championships because you're playing with Shaq." It bothered me when he said it.”

“I don't think a coach becomes the right coach until he wins a championship.”

“At the end of 2003, my game was complete. Shooting, defence, using the dribble, transition, midrange stuff was all there. Then it was about fine-tuning and trying to improve in each area.”

“It's different from being 21 and you think there's an endless amount of opportunities. At 33, the ending is much, much closer.”

“I like playing for the purple and gold. This is where I want to finish up.”

“Friends can come and go, but banners hang forever.”

“I draw from the crowd a lot.”

“Twitter is great to connect with fans and be transparent. I enjoy that aspect about it. But really, I'm still trying to figure it out.”

“Dropkick Murphys get me going, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Nirvana... plus all the regular hip-hop stuff.”

“The only thing I'm afraid of is bees. I don't like bees. I'm allergic to them.”

“As basketball players, we're really supposed to shut up and dribble, but I'm glad we do a little bit more than that.”

“What can I say? Mamba out.”