With all the fan fare and admiration from his peers and the media during his farewell tour, it was easy to miss that none of Kobe’s family members were ever around. No, I’m not referring to his wife Vanessa and their children, I am referring to his parents and sisters. We didn’t see any of them at any games or on any courts as Kobe soaked in the love from fans one last time and it turns out it’s because Kobe hasn’t spoken to his parents in years and has somewhat of a rocky relationship with his sisters. As you might assume, all the hostility stems from money.
@IamJoeSports
It’s no secret that Kobe had an issue with his parents a few years back when they sold some of his memorabilia without his permission, netting themselves a nice profit somewhere close to $500,000. Kobe was furious with them about that because it looked like they were money grubbing and he still has never let that go.
When real life doesn’t fit into pithy tag lines or 90-second commercials, Kobe shuts it out. He doesn’t believe in cognitive dissonance. It’s not productive.
For instance, Kobe hasn’t spoken to his parents in nearly three years. Not since 2013, when they tried to auction off his high school memorabilia without his consent.
“Our relationship is shit,” he says. “I say [to them], ‘I’m going to buy you a very nice home, and the response is ‘That’s not good enough’?” he says. “Then you’re selling my shit?”
His parents issued a statement after lawyers worked out a settlement allowing them to auction six items of memorabilia totaling $500,000, “We regret our actions and statements related to the Kobe Bryant auction memorabilia,” the statement from Joe and Pamela Bryant read. “We apologize for any misunderstanding and unintended pain we may have caused our son and appreciate the financial support that he has provided to us over the years.”
Kobe says his sisters, Sharia and Shaya, have learned to accept that Kobe has removed money from his relationships with them. “They’re very smart, college-educated [women],” Kobe says. “I’m really proud of them. They were able to get their own jobs, get their own lives, take care of themselves. Now they have a better sense of self, of who they are as people, instead of being resentful because they were relying on me.
“It was tough for me to do,” he says. There’s pain in his voice, not anger. “But it’s something you have to do, something you have to be very strong about.”
It’s clearly still a sore spot for the Mamba but then again, he has his right to still feel a certain way but since we are talking about family, similar to the way Kobe patched his relationship with fans and the media, hopefully he and his parents can eventually do the same.
