The Mamba Mentality
How I Play
-
-
4.5 • 64 Ratings
-
-
- $27.99
-
- $27.99
Publisher Description
The Mamba Mentality: How I Play is Kobe Bryant’s personal perspective of his life and career on the basketball court and his exceptional, insightful style of playing the game—a fitting legacy from the late Los Angeles Laker superstar.
In the wake of his retirement from professional basketball, Kobe “The Black Mamba” Bryant decided to share his vast knowledge and understanding of the game to take readers on an unprecedented journey to the core of the legendary “Mamba mentality.” Citing an obligation and an opportunity to teach young players, hardcore fans, and devoted students of the game how to play it “the right way,” The Mamba Mentality takes us inside the mind of one of the most intelligent, analytical, and creative basketball players ever.
In his own words, Bryant reveals his famously detailed approach and the steps he took to prepare mentally and physically to not just succeed at the game, but to excel. Readers will learn how Bryant studied an opponent, how he channeled his passion for the game, how he played through injuries. They’ll also get fascinating granular detail as he breaks down specific plays and match-ups from throughout his career.
Bryant’s detailed accounts are paired with stunning photographs by the Hall of Fame photographer Andrew D. Bernstein. Bernstein, long the Lakers and NBA official photographer, captured Bryant’s very first NBA photo in 1996 and his last in 2016—and hundreds of thousands in between, the record of a unique, twenty-year relationship between one athlete and one photographer.
The combination of Bryant’s narrative and Bernstein’s photos make The Mamba Mentality an unprecedented look behind the curtain at the career of one of the world’s most celebrated and fascinating athletes.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
The Mamba Mentality is a fascinating first-person breakdown of how Kobe Bryant became one of the NBA’s all-time greats. Kobe gets granular on everything, from his training regimen to the strengths and weakness of his most famous teammates and opponents. (Oh yeah, he’s got a lot to say about Shaq.) Using 20 years of game photos by Andrew D. Bernstein, Bryant illustrates every trick of his trade. No matter how you feel about Bryant’s legacy, The Mamba Mentality is a revealing and surprising guide to the game’s ongoing evolution.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
"I had a constant craving, a yearning, to improve and be the best," writes Los Angeles Lakers legend Bryant in this exciting coffee-table book full of inspiring quotes, insights to his game, and beautiful photos by Bernstein. With a focus on "Process" and "Craft," Bryant lays out his routine, including the rigorous workout schedule three two-hour sessions that started at 5 a.m. that he developed in order to maximize family time ( "I decided to sacrifice sleep"). Bryant writes that, early in his career, he scoured the referee handbook, which allowed him to get away with "holds, travels, and all sorts of minor violations simply because I took the time to understand the officials' limitations." Even the national anthem served as game preparation, during which he tried "to feel the energy of the environment and allow it to move through me." With Bernstein's intimate, vivid photos, readers get escorted to cheerless practice gyms, press scrums, and sterile locker rooms. "Greatness is not for everybody," Bryant believes, and in this pictorial he convincingly chronicles the relentless zigzagging required for those who hope to achieve it. A wide range of hoops fans from NBA buffs looking to understand Bryant's approach to aspiring hoopsters seeking an on-court edge are in for a treat.
