SPORTS SHORTS 39: KOBE AND MANNY
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 29 Jan 2021
Filipino sports icon and incumbent senator Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao joined the millions of fans all over the sporting world who paid tribute to basketball legend Kobe Bryant’s first death anniversary last Wednesday through posts on his social media Instagram and Twitter accounts. A post shared by Manny Pacquiao (@mannypacquiao): "Remembering Kobe #mambaforever,” with a picture of him during Bryant's in one of his sparring sessions at Wild Card Gym.
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Bryant perished with eight others including his 13-year-old daughter Gianna in a helicopter crash on January 26 (January 27 Philippine time) in Calabasas, California while on their way to his Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks. When Kobe and daughter died last year, Pacquiao eulogized the former Los Angeles Lakers superstar in his social media post: "The world lost a legend today but the impact and legacy he leaves behind will last forever! #RIPMamba".
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Both Pacquiao and Bryant were fans of each other. Manny’s close relationship with Bryant started in 2011, when the NBA superstar came to visit the eight-division champion at the Wild Card Gym while Manny trained for his third bout with Juan Manuel Marquez of Mexico.
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Bryant had come to witness how Pacquiao trained and to gain insights in to order to improve his conditioning. The two sporting greats met intimately, shook hands, and were both elated to be in the presence of each other. Although they had been together before for photo-ops, this was their first real meeting and it touched off a long-distance interest in each other’s work.
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“He went crazy when Kobe came in that day,” said trainer Freddie Roach. “That was unbelievable. It was the best day of his life, I think.” Pacquiao received tips from Mamba on basketball techniques. “Manny asked him about basketball and shooting and how to become a better player,” Roach added. “He’s not shy about asking questions. Manny still plays basketball every day. He has an indoor court at his house. He’s a fanatic about basketball. I know losing Kobe is a really great loss to Manny as well as the whole world.”
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Bryant signed an endorsement contract with Nike in 2003, and has since partnered with the shoe company to manufacture his signature “Kobe” shoes that have been widely sold over the world for more than ten years now. One popular shoe design especially in the Philippines was the Kobe IX, a design inspired future Hall of Famer boxing champion Manny Pacquiao, who also signed a deal with Nike in 2011. Kobe changed from his usual low-cut shoes to high-cut, similar to the shoes Pacquiao wear atop the boxing
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Reports had it that Floyd Mayweather's exhibition bout with Youtube sensation Logan Paul is postponed to a later date. The bout is scheduled on February 20, on pay-per-view. However, no venue or official undercard was ever announced. Likewise, the official rules of the exhibition match were never explained. In an interview, Paul admits that there were complications with pushing through on February 20, but insists the contest will still happen.
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"We're figuring it out now. There was some complications with - actually, I don't know how much I can say. I will say this; the complications are when you're dealing with someone like Floyd Mayweather," Paul told Night Shift Gaming. "Who is the most desired, highest paid fighter on the planet and he operates at a certain calibre, and the people around him want to make sure their talent, their fighter is performing at a certain level, there’s a lot of hoops to jump through."
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In spite his 47-point production, the Washington Wizards lost 124-106 to the New Orleans Pelicans. They played without eight players because of injury, health and safety protocols or rest, and now Washington with 3-11 lost its third straight game on Wednesday and now owns the worst record in the NBA.
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Beal currently leads the league in scoring with 35.4 points per game. But Wizards shooting guard also owns a record he does not want to have. Beal has lost 10 straight games since 2019 when scoring 40 points or more. That's the most defeats for players with scores of 40 or more in NBA history, according to Elias Sports Bureau.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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