Kobe Bryant was always ice cold on the court. However, there were times when he would lose his cool, even resulting in a $100,000 fine!
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There are a handful of NBA players who have the physical abilities to be great. That number is significantly reduced when you consider the mentality required to be legendary.
When thinking of such players, a few come to mind. LeBron James, Larry Bird, and Michael Jordan are certainly on the list. However, there was nothing like the ‘Mamba Mentality’ of Kobe Bryant.
The Black Mamba was a killer on the court, and by the end of his career, had five championships, averaging 25 points, five rebounds, and around five assists per season!
“That’s ‘Mamba Mentality’. We don’t quit, we don’t cower, we don’t run. We endure and conquer.” #KobeDay #MambaForever pic.twitter.com/2PbA3Qnh69
— Microsoft Theater (@MSTheater) August 24, 2021
This attitude allowed Kobe to give off a vibe of being cool, calm, and collected. However, there were times when he would lose it, leading to huge expenses for the Laker legend.
Kobe Bryant was handed a massive $100,000 fine for using an anti-gay slur on a referee back in 2011
The Los Angeles Lakers were taking on the San Antonio Spurs in 2011 when a frustrated Kobe Bryant made a costly mistake.
Kobe was handed his 15th technical foul of the season by referee Bennie Adams. The call angered Bryant so much that he hurled an anti-gay slur at the ref, calling him a ‘fag**t’.
His actions cost him dearly, as the NBA fined him $100,000. However, things went from bad to worse, as his poor decision led to much criticism from numerous gay-rights groups.
The Black Mamba would later apologize for his actions and even attempted to own up to his mistake by engaging in discourse with gay-rights groups. He would also try to appeal the $100,000 fine but to no avail.
