The 18-year-old NBA veteran has written a piece for the Players Tribune on how the Coronavirus outbreak has affected the entire world, what’s the situation in Spain be like and how Kobe Bryant has helped him change his mentality.
“It feels like we’ve lived a year in the last three weeks. From one person in isolation to another, I hope you and your loved ones are getting through this crisis as well as can be.”
He continued by saying: “It all happened so fast: One day, we were going to our jobs, hanging out with friends and going to restaurants. The NBA playoffs were a month away. I was busy rehabbing an injury that has kept me out of competitive basketball for a little over a year. The Tokyo Olympics were on the horizon and I was looking forward to being ready by the summer to join Spain’s national team, in what would’ve been my fifth Olympic Games. Then suddenly, we were in self-confinement. State of emergency. Travel restrictions. The world came to a halt.”
Gasol decided to finish his article referring to a teammate that, according to him, the way he responded to setbacks was one of the most remarkable things he has seen in his life: “He viewed adversity as a great teacher and an opportunity to grow.”
That teammate was Kobe Bryant, he says: “I’m really missing Kobe these days, and the things he taught me are louder than ever in my mind, and in my heart. We need this mentality right now. We may not be in control of very much, but we still have choices. The way we respond to the pandemic, and its aftermath, will define this moment in our history. Will we come out of this grateful and united – or resentful and divided? It’s up to us.”
You can find his entire article here.
