“Mental toughness is really all about not getting too high or too low but kinda staying even keel. The trick is not to get too emotionally attached to the situation.” – Kobe Bryant

Having grown up in the Michael Jordan era it was hard to fathom that there would be any other player that would rise to fill MJ’s boots or possess that level of basketball mental toughness. Many have been labelled as being “the next Michael Jordan” and many have failed due to a weak state of their mental game when placed under the burdens of such high expectations.

1996 was the first year that saw a guard being taken out of high school to join the ranks of the NBA. The then 17 year old Kobe Bryant needed his parents to co-sign his contract with the Lakers when he was traded from the Hornets for Vlade Divac. The trade was part of a last minute pre-draft deal between the Hornets and the Lakers.

Bryant’s first season saw him becoming the youngest player to have then played in the NBA [18 years and 72 days] as well as the youngest player to win the slam dunk contest. Kobe may have thrown up 4 air balls at critical stages of the Lakers last playoff game defeat to the Jazz that season but by doing so he was showing the early signs of his mental toughness. Shaq was quoted as saying that Bryant was “the only guy who had the guts at the time to take shots like that”.

His list of firsts grew again in his second season when he was became the youngest player to be named as a starter in the NBA All Star team. Bryant’s 15.4 points per game was the highest of any non-starter in that season.

Kobe went on to win five NBA championships, is a 16 time All-Star, a 15 time member of the All-NBA Team and a 12-time member of the All-Defensive team. At 34 years and 104 days of age, Bryant became the youngest player in league history to reach 30,000 career points. He is also the all-time leading scorer in Lakers franchise history.

As the NBA superstar aged he showed his superior mental toughness on countless occasions. Time after time throughout his illustrious career Kobe demonstrated the benefits of having a strong mental game. Basketball is a game where the strong survive and the weak fade from our minds and into obscurity.

Kobe’s character has constantly challenged his battle worn body to work for him. His confidence has rewarded him when fighting to overcome injury and when trying out cutting edge treatments.

Kobe is a true picture of mental toughness.

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