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"Watch what's next" - Matt Barnes says Kobe Bryant always believed his best work was still ahead
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- "Watch what's next" - Matt Barnes says Kobe Bryant always believed his best work was still ahead
Although Kobe Bryant ended his illustrious 20-year career with a resounding bang, scoring 60 points in his very last game in 2016, his reputation as one of the game's all-time greats had already been set in stone long before the curtain dropped.
A five-time NBA champion, a two-time NBA Finals MVP, an MVP, an 18-time All-Star, a 15-time All-NBA team member, and a 12-time member of the All-Defensive team, Kobe had accomplished everything he had set out to do when he joined the league straight out of high school in 1996.
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But according to his former teammate and close friend, Matt Barnes , Kobe was adamant that he still had plenty of gas left in his tank to pursue greatness in other fields and was excited to show everyone what he could do.
Kobe gave Matt a preview
Years after Kobe's retirement, Matt recalled how he and Stephen Jackson had the rare chance to sit down and interview the Black Mamba for an episode of "All The Smoke." He recalled that it was the moment when Kobe pulled the curtain back on a few of his projects.
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"So me and Jack went out to his space in Orange County to interview him. And when I tell you, from the time we stepped in — because we went into the office and just kicked it with him for a little bit — he was showing us the children's book he was writing and told me something about his fund," Barnes shared , referring to the young adult novels he had written and produced.
"And he was just so adamant on just like, 'Watch this next 20 years.' He's like, 'I don't want people to know me for the last 20 years,'" he continued. "And I'm thinking like, 'You're a five-time champ, one of the greatest — what are you talking about?' 'No, watch — watch what's next.'"
It didn't take long for Kobe to make his mark after his basketball career. He became the first African-American to win the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for "Dear Basketball," which was based on the poem that he wrote announcing his retirement from the game.
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Before his untimely passing, Kobe had already set in motion plans to make his own animation studio under his own production company, Granity Studios.
Kobe's transition to other fields was easy
While other professional athletes have a hard time moving past their hoop careers and entering various fields, Kobe had no such difficulty. Matt divulged that Kobe even told him that this phase of their lives should be seamless, as they already possessed the discipline necessary to thrive in whatever arena they wanted to enter.
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"Kobe was the one who told me that our transition into business should be easy because we're such disciplined athletes to make it where we win. If we just apply this same discipline to business, we're going to outwork everybody," Barnes remarked.
"And he was the first person — although I knew my grind was going to do that — he's the person that put it in words. He's just like, you know me, we're up at four or five in the morning on the track — now I'm up at 4:00 or 5 in the morning answering emails. A lot easier, you know," Barnes continued.
"So he was the one that like, 'Yo, if we apply this athletic grind to life, we're going to kill it.' And he wasn't lying."
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Although Kobe was still in touch with basketball, coaching his daughter and her teammates and helping other NBA players sharpen their skills in the offseason, he was ready to dive headfirst into other ventures and was actually already reaping the fruits of his labor. There's no doubt in anyone's mind that Kobe was pegged for greatness in his post-basketball career; it's just unfortunate that he wasn't able to realize it.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Apr 2, 2026, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
