Retired Lakers legend Kobe Bryant penned a short, emotional essay in the Player's Tribune Wednesday, in a letter to "his 17-year-old self." Bryant told his younger self that he needed to not just give friends and family money, but to instead "invest in their futures."
Bryant reflected something a lot of players say after being in professional sports for a duration of time, that eventually you're just giving people money to be wasted, and that creates burned bridges and hurt feelings. Bryant instead recommends giving them opportunities to grow their own businesses, or helping to find them jobs through connections, rather than just providing money for the sake of having money.
I'm writing you now so that you can begin this process immediately, and so that you don't have to deal with the hurt and struggle of weaning them off of the addiction that you facilitated. That addiction only leads to anger, resentment and jealousy from everybody involved, including yourself.
As time goes on, you will see them grow independently and have their own ambitions and their own lives, and your relationship with all of them will be much better as a result.
There's plenty more I could write to you, but at 17, I know you don't have the attention span to sit through 2,000 words.
The next time I write to you, I may touch on the challenges of mixing blood with business. The most important advice I can give to you is to make sure your parents remain PARENTS and not managers.
Source: Letter to My Younger Self | The Players' Tribune.
That last bit has to do with a bitter and ugly divide between Bryant and his parents over their attempts to auction off his memorabilia through the years. Bryant eventually sued his parens to stop the sale and regain control over the profits thereof, and since then he and his parents have not been on speaking terms, according to reports.
It's a sad but fascinating insight into the lives of professional athletes, and how the money they are blessed with can change their lives and the lives of those around them, but also warp and destroy long-standing relationships. There's so much money and it comes so easily for those who aren't working for it, while the athletes deal with constant requests for help from everyone who has ever known them.
The money's worth it, that much is clear. But it's good to remember the downsides, and it's good for Bryant to provide the next generation with this warning of how quickly things can go badly if they aren't careful with their new-found wealth. Bryant made a reported $328 million in his 20-year NBA career.
