What a sad Sunday it was last week...RIP Kobe & GiGi

Whats up everyone? It has been hard for me to write this blog and took me a couple days to get the energy to do it. This past Sunday out in LA was filled with sadness. Basketball Legend Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna died also with 7 others in a helicopter crash on Sunday Morning. They were headed to a Game at the Mamba Academy that started around 2pm. There are many things about this situation that are getting investigated. Everyone has questions like: How do you think Kobe felt in those last moments knowing he was probably going to down and his daughter was with him? He probably did everything in his power to protect her in those final moments. Why  

were they flying in such bad weather, when even LAPD had grounded their helicopters? I havewatched and read many interviews, there is a lot more to the story, it will all come out throughout the investigation. One witness stated that he heard the helicopter but could not see it. He said that it sounded like the helicopter was having some difficulties then 

the next thing you know it's up in flames on the side of the mountain. It is crazy how many people have ​gathered together after this happened. Even though the Grammy's were happening at Staples Center Sunday Night, thousands of people came to L A Live to pay their respects. People left, basketballs, jerseys, flowers, pictures. It is amazing to see how much of an impact one man can create for others. There are murals popping up not only all over L A but all over the world.

Kobe Bryant was a legend. He changed the sport of Basketball. He set high standards and always tired to be his very best even at his toughest times. His nickname was Black Mamba. Something I found out today was that normally in basketball you get a nickname for something you do or whatever. Kobe actually gave himself that nickname, when he was going through a rough time in 2003. Kobe Bryant was only 41 years old when we lost him from this world. He has 4 daughters with his loving wife Vanessa and is a total girls dad. He played 20 years for the Lakers and won 1 MVP Award. He also scored 81 points in one game. The way this man played basketball was the definition of Mamba Mentality. Not only was a great dad, he was also a great coach to his daughter Gigi. She was on the road to taking on his legacy but for the WNBA. Kobe would also coach her teams and take her to games and break them down with her. Gigi was Kobe's Mini Me. RIP <3

I'll finish this off by letting y'all know how Kobe has changed my life. When I was little, I was very into sports. I never played on a team till my senior year of high school but everyday in the school yard I was always the girl playing basketball with the boys growing up. I went to sports camp from 98-04, 2 years after Kobe got drafted for the LA Lakers. Now being a girl growing up in LA, I came to love a bunch of the LA teams: Dodgers, Lakers, more recently the Kings and Rams. Kobe is a big part of why I love sports today. I remember always wanting to watch the Laker games but needing my dad to explain it a bit more to me because I was still young. Soon after I started watching their games more regularly, Kobe #8 at the time became my favorite player. He was a Beast, always doing his best, never giving up. The way him and Shaq played together with their team was by far my favorite. One of the best games I ever watched was sitting at Jerry's Deli on Ventura Blvd with my parents. I remember asking the hostess to seat us by a tv so I could watch the game playing. That night was an epic night. Lakers won and all I can really remember was feeling pure joy watching that game. Kobe lead his team to victory which he always did. That will be one of the fondest memories I have had. Lately I have been in PT due to a knee surgery I had. This week alone, I have definitely had both the Mamba Mentality and the Mambacita Mentality through all my exercises I've been doing. As Kobe once said "Heroes come and go but Legends are forever" 

"The most important thing is to try and Inspire people so that they can be great in whatever they want to do." - Kobe Bryant <3

R.I.P. BLACK MAMBA AND MAMBACITA!