Please tell me I am not the only one trying to learn why KOBE (no last name needed) had two numbers... I was a tennis player so no number needed, but my children, since day one, have always tried to choose their lucky number when getting their jerseys. I am as superstitious as the next 'kinda' athlete, so I always prayed they would get their number. Bob Lilly=#74, Roger Staubach=#12, Pat Tillman=#40, Larry Bird=#33
All have one number...
Kobe was an anomaly in every way. Handsome, beyond talented athlete, author, producer, Podcaster, funny, kind, brilliant, and from all stories told- an amazing father!! Kobe Bryant - what a man!
Once upon a time, I would look this up in an Encyclopedia but thanks to Google, I was quickly able to learn about Mamba and the numbers 8 & 24. I encourage others to look it up too. In a nutshell, he switched numbers in the middle of his career. With both numbers, he experienced the same success! #8 was chosen based on his Adidas number, 143, as these numbers add up to eight. This was a time when he was trying to prove himself. George McCloud wore the number 24 when he joined the Lakers so he could not use his 1st High School #. Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had Kobe's other HS number 33 which was appropriately already retired.
Number 8 and 24! They represent two very different times of Kobe's career. He said, "Things evolve. It's not that one is better than the other or one's a way to be. It's just growth."
I feel you amazing Kobe Bryant. We are always the same physically but thanks to God, we continue to evolve.
God bless the Bryant family, the Altobelli family, the Chester family, the Mauser family, and the Zobayan family....
