Dwyane Wade Admits Kobe Bryant’s Retirement Influenced Him to Step Away From the Sport: “It Hurt as He Was a Leader”

When talking about the best players to ever play in the NBA, some player names are constant. Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar are present in almost everyone’s list.

While most of the players are remembered for their achievements, Kobe is remembered mainly because of his influence. In spite of winning everything on the basketball court, Bryant’s impact outside the court will be his greatest achievement.

He was a role model all around the world. Dwyane Wade’s recent words give us an idea of how influential Kobe was. The Miami Heat legend recently talked about how Kobe’s retirement influenced him to do the same.

How Kobe influenced Dwyane Wade

While most of the fans are aware of the impact Kobe had on his players, lots of NBA players playing alongside him also took inspiration from the Mamba. Whether it is Devin Booker, Jayson Tatum, or DeMar DeRozan, they have all admitted to being influenced by Bryant.

In a recent interview with Jay Shetty, Dwyane Wade revealed how Kobe’s decision to retire pushed him to do the same. Wade mentions, “The basketball side of it is watching someone who has a god-gifted ability. Like god blessed Kobe Bryant with so much ability, but to be able to watch him work that ability, I mean that’s inspiring.” 

He adds, “But for me, watching Kobe Bryant retire was probably the most impactful part of the whole journey. He was a leader. Like I retired after him and I’m like, ‘I’m gonna follow Kobe.”

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Wade’s words give us an idea of how influential Kobe was. Whether it was his gameplay or retirement, the Mamba made sure he sets an impact wherever he goes.

Wade talks about Kobe Bryant

If it isn’t evident enough, Dwyane Wade has a lot of respect for Kobe. During their playing days, Wade went on to praise Kobe. He said, “The Kobe Bryants aren’t around no more. There are good young players, but there will never be another Kobe.”

All of this happened when the Miami Heat took on the Los Angeles Lakers in 2015. Bryant was on the sidelines when Wade scored 12 points and 6 assists in 25 minutes of play.

Dwyane Wade vs Bryant head-to-head

The two legends have faced each other 20 times during their career. All of them have been played in the regular season with Wade having the edge over Bryant.

He has 11 wins over Kobe Bryant in the 20 matches between them. When the stats come into play, Bryant dominates Wade. Bryant averages 26.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 4.7 assists. On the other hand, Dwyane Wade averages 24.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 6.5 assists. (Source: landofbasketball.com)

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What is your favorite memory of Kobe Bryant? Let us know in the comments below.