More than six years after his passing, the legacy of Kobe Bryant remains present among the stars of the NBA, but also within the WNBA.
Napheesa Collier, star of the Minnesota Lynx, shared an emotional memory about the last conversation she had with Bryant before the tragic helicopter accident he suffered in January 2020, in which eight other people were also traveling, including his daughter Gianna (Gigi).
What Bryant told Collier in their last conversation
During a recent interview with The Score, Napheesa was asked which NBA player she formed the strongest bond with. Without hesitation, she named the former Los Angeles Lakers player and explained that he was one of the people she most often turned to for advice on improving her game:
“I’d say it was Kobe before he died,” Collier stated. “I just tried to really pick his brain about a lot of stuff.”
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In addition, the Lynx star also recalled what the last conversation she had with Bryant was like. After one of her games, “Phee” took the opportunity to ask him for an honest evaluation of her performance, and the response laid bare the competitive mindset of the “Black Mamba”:
“I asked him about how I did in the game, what he thought. He gave me his thoughts, like what he thought I could do better… he was always like that, just really willing to help to make people better and to promote the women’s game,” she recalled.
The truth is that the Lakers legend had taken action to promote women’s sports, attending games in the WNBA, maintaining close relationships with players, and advising them from his experience and knowledge. Sabrina Ionescu, Diana Taurasi, and Breanna Stewart are added to this list.
For Collier, that conversation ended up becoming an invaluable memory. Without knowing it would be the last time she would receive advice from Bryant, his words were etched as a perfect example of the “Mamba Mentality”: to compete, learn, and help others reach their best selves.
In this way, Napheesa’s anecdote reminded us that Bryant’s legacy remains present not only through his titles and records in the NBA, but also through the influence he had on an entire generation of players who found in him a mentor willing to share his wisdom.