There is a reason millennials are largely unimpressed with the basketball stars of today. They literally saw a player like Kobe Bryant taking over the scene. Remember when he tore his Achilles and still made the free throws before exiting the game? Or when Matt Barnes tried to throw a fake pass right in Kobe’s face to get under his skin, Bryant didn’t even flinch. He met that challenge with icy, unbreakable resolve.

Countless such moments throughout the Los Angeles Lakers star’s career give us a reason to celebrate on 24-08. It is the chosen ‘Mamba Day’ as the day after his birthday, and the two jersey numbers he wore throughout his career. Nike will organise its third Mamba League Invitational to celebrate legacy, bring together the best high school basketball players in the country. It is “where Mamba Mentality takes the stage”.

While the day gives us a cause for celebration, it also gives us a day to take a deep breath and grieve the loss of this superstar, who died in a tragic helicopter accident along with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna Bryant. Probably every fan knows what they were doing or where they were when they got this news at the time. It’s a memory that is hard to forget. Imagine if it affected the fans so much, how much that event would have impacted the people who personally knew the legend.

One of them is LA Lakers Co-Owner Jeanie Buss. Buss inherited this team from her father, Jerry Buss, and was very close to Kobe. She had a powerful message on account of Mamba Day, writing, “Happy Mamba Day 2025! Each year it grows in meaning, becoming part of our calendar. Mamba mentality applies to all, not just athletes. Challenge yourself – if you are going to do something, do everything you can to prepare and execute. Do the work and go for the win.”

For his entire life, Bryant tried to instill his work ethic in everyone who would listen. Most of the current generation of legends talk about Kobe as the one who inspired them. Take Steph Curry, LeBron James, who are already among the greats, or players who are on the way there like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who said, “Hopefully I’m somewhere close to that as a basketball player one day. But he was a special talent, special person, and God rest his soul.”

When it comes to Buss, she was guided by Bryant when she took over the franchise in 2013, following her father’s death. Bryant invited Buss to lunch after she had incurred this huge loss in her life. She spent some time with Gianna and Kobe, showing her that women can be “leaders in the NBA, just like the men.”

After Bryant’s retirement in 2015, he still remained very active behind the scenes. “You always have Kobe,” Buss once recalled her ex-boyfriend and legendary coach Phil Jackson telling her. “Kobe will always have your back. You can trust Kobe. And you know, Kobe was that friend for me. And you can’t replace that.” She has also referred to Kobe as someone she “misses the most.” The legend has certainly left an imprint on Buss, whose values continue to affect how the Lakers organisation works. His legacy will take the screen soon, as the makers have acquired a spec script.

Kobe Bryant’s Life Set for Big Screen in Upcoming Movie, Or Is It?

Kobe’s life is tailor-made for a movie that could hit the screens and make millions. His childhood or the lack thereof, his legacy with the Lakers, and his partnership with Shaquille O’Neal. The friction between the two during their peak years. His personal controversies, including the 2003 scandal. However, the latest news is that a movie is set to be made, but not on the topic you would first think about.

Warner Bros. has begun development on a film titled “With the 8th Pick,” put forward by writers Alex Sohn and Gavin Johannsen, according to Vanity Fair. Which is curious, as Bryant was the 13th pick of the draft. However, there were a lot of movie-worthy conversations going on behind the scenes. Instead of diving into his Lakers journey, this movie will follow the perspective of former Nets head coach John Calipari, who wanted to draft Bryant, per D’Alessandro, and former Nets general manager John Nash. The Nets had worked out Bryant three times, and each time the high school guard wowed Nets management.

“If you watched the workouts,” Calipari said in 2011, “you would say either this kid was taught to fool us in these workouts or he’s ridiculous.”

On the night before the draft, Nets management had an almost ‘celebratory’ dinner with Bryant’s parents, Joe and Pam. However, things fell apart in the final hours of the draft. “We were ready to take Kobe,” said Joe Taub, one of the Nets’ then primary owners. “But then a lot of things happened with management and the agent, and things changed that [draft] night.” These rapid changes involved a dedicated Jerry West, who convinced the Nets that Bryant wouldn’t play for them if drafted. It was all a bluff that changed the Lakers for good and left the Nets thinking what could have been.

“With the 8th Pick” will reportedly focus on this drama that also involved other factors and display how the Lakers stole the phenom from the Nets. The movie is shaping up as a high-stakes sports thriller, blending the front-office drama of ‘Moneyball,’ the tech-world intensity of ‘The Social Network,’ and the cultural impact captured in ‘Air.’ With the 8th Pick will dive into the intense negotiations and pivotal decisions that nearly changed the course of NBA history, and the future of basketball itself.