The Dream Is the Work, Not the Reward

In a 2013 game against the Golden State Warriors, Kobe Bryant tore his Achilles tendon. He walked to the free-throw line, hit both shots, and then walked off the court. Later, when a reporter told him that if anyone could get through this, it was probably him, Bryant put his head down and said something rare for a man famous for his relentless will: "I don't know if I can do this. I don't know if I want to do it." The hardest part wasn't the pain or the surgery—it was the uncertainty of whether he wanted to endure the long recovery. Then his children came into the trainer's room, looking at him. He told them it would be alright. "As a parent, you gotta set the example. This is another obstacle. This obstacle cannot define me. It's not gonna cripple me. It's not gonna be responsible for me stepping away from the game that I love. I'm gonna step away on my own terms."

The Kill List and the Long Game