One of Kobe Bryant‘s greatest contributions to the game of basketball was his ability to inspire the next generation of great players.
However, Bryant was able to do that for players that weren’t much younger than him, including the famous friend group of LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, and Dwyane Wade.
These four, commonly known as the ‘Banana Boat,’ have all been inspired or changed by Bryant at one point or another, especially when all four collided with him at the 2008 Olympics as part of the Redeem Team.