Nearly everywhere Dwyane Wade goes, he’s the biggest celebrity in the place. It makes sense. He’s a three-time NBA champion, a Hall-of-Famer, and one of the best basketball players of the last two decades. In the 2008 Olympics though, even Wade was reduced to just another person in awe of Kobe Bryant.
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The former Heat star told a story on his podcast The Why with Dwyane Wade where he recalled following Kobe around Beijing like just another fan. Wade is famous, but Kobe’s fame was on another level, and he was swarmed by adoring fans everywhere he went. Wade turned into just a photographer.
“You thought you was a star, you thought you were famous, until you went to China with Kobe, and nobody gave a f*** about you.”
Wade said he was like a kid around Kobe, just trying to follow him wherever he went. It was Kobe’s idea for the team to spend time with the other athletes in the Olympic village—to get out there and be seen by people and not be cloistered to themselves.
“This is when I realized he was at a different level than I. This motherf**ker could speak nine different languages. He spoke to everybody in their native tongue. I’m struggling with English, and this motherf**ker … So not only am I trying to catch you in basketball, you got nine languages on me?!”
Wade described Kobe as having “a glow,” which made me think of how Charlie Murphy described Rick James’ “aura” on Chappelle’s Show. Wade saw Kobe as Murphy saw James—dominating every room he walked into.
Kobe Bryant was exactly what the 2008 Olympic team needed
In the 2004 Olympics, the Americans shockingly lost three times, including in the semifinals to eventual gold medal-winner Argentina. This was the first time since 1988 that Team USA hadn’t brought home the gold, which is why the 2008 team was dubbed “The Redeem Team.”
Nobody expected Kobe to join that 2008 team, but when he did, it forced everyone on Team USA to reach a higher level.
“Everyone thought Kobe was about Kobe. And he showed up and said, ‘I’m tired of watching y’all lose, let’s get it.’ And he became a different version of the Kobe that we knew,” Wade said. “He kicked us into gear. It put our mindset and our focus somewhere else.”
The 2008 Team USA went on to win the gold, and they’ve won it every year since. Without Kobe, who knows? That team might have lost too, LeBron James and the other top players may have opted out in future years, and basketball might only be a flicker on the global stage.
