By Koh Yizhe/Red Sports
Question: What did Kobe Bryant do at the Singapore Indoor Stadium?
Answer: He made a spectacular entrance to the delight of 8,000 screaming fans, strutted around and talked for 40 minutes, made 7 layups, missed two jump shots, thanked the fans, and left.
That was what fans were "treated" to last night at the Kobe Bryant Asia Tour at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, where 8,000 fans gathered to watch "Mr. MVP" in action. One would think that he would be more active, displaying the skills that made him the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the recent NBA Finals. A dunk or two would have been quite a sight to behold, but no such efforts were made. Some fans were even expecting him to play a match!
Many that Red Sports talked to believed Singapore was “just another stop” in his Asian tour, and felt hard done by his “touch-and-go” showing.
It was rather disappointing for some like Tham Chen Munn from the Singapore Modern Pentathlon Association. He, just like others, felt it was simply a publicity stunt where 8,000 people watched a superstar prance around for 40 minutes.
"I didn't know that Kobe Bryant wasn't playing a match! But I feel this whole thing is a publicity stunt. Basketball isn't about one man; instead, it is a team sport. However, it does help in the promotion of the National Basketball Association (NBA) in Singapore," said Chen Munn.
However, there were some who felt the enjoyment of seeing the "Black Mamba" in person.
The girls basketball team from Dunearn Secondary School were among those screaming their heads off when Bryant made his dazzling appearance. But when Red Sports tested their knowledge on Kobe Bryant trivia, all they knew was how big a superstar he is, and were unable to state his achievements.
"But you don't have to be a big Kobe Bryant fan to be screaming his name! He is really professional and impressive!" said Rachael Lim.
Still, they didn't know he wasn't playing a match.
"Oh really? I didn't know! But at least we get to see him through his coaching time with the 20 youths. However, I do agree it is a publicity stunt," commented Sherlyn Wong.
Adrian Yusuf Maringan Pardede was the lucky winner of a pair of tickets in the Red Sports lucky draw. He is a big fan of Kobe Bryant’s shoes and is searching for his Finals shoe. (Photo 1 © Lai Jun Wei/Red Sports)
Pang Bo En already had tickets and so gave away his pair. (Photo 2 © Lai Jun Wei/Red Sports)
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HEY GUYS PUT YOURSELF IN KOBE’S SHOES. He been to so many asian countries before. And he did display some of his dunks and skills. Even videos are being posted on youtube. To me the reason WHY he dint showcase his talents, is because we as a fan did not do much for him. I did went that night. Frankly speaking, the crowd in singapore is not wild enough, nothing compare to the other asian countries and america. So to him, he felt that maybe ppl here dont appreciate him that much.
Just reading some of the comments just now and it makes me laugh that people expected one of the best in the game worth over 30 million per season (which is only his playing contract) to play a game and possibly risk injury and ending his career…some people need to wake up to themselves. Be greatful Nike chose to bring out Kobe and not some second string development player that no-one has heard of…oh and all of you complaining, how much did you pay for those tickets again?
It’s free guys, so why expect so much? Just be thankful Nike Singapore gave away the tickets for this publicity stint. I was just happy I didn’t have to pay anything to soak in the atmosphere for a light-hearted appearance by Kobe.
This is probably the next best thing to watching him play in a Lakers uniform in Staples Centre which will actually COST YOU MONEY.
@ abc, haha
thanks for catching the error! I must have heard wrong with all the loud music playing!
isn’t sherlyn wong and rachael lim from dunearn and not dunman?
Errr i guess it was Dunearn Sec instead of dunman sec girls(:
Another sad reality is that the people I find complaining are those who bought their tickets. Uhg.
I guess there are reasons for some fans to be disappointed if Kobe is an athlete to them more than just another celebrity, and these fans would rather pay to see Kobe display his skills for 2 hours than to pay nothing for him to parade around the stadium and ‘coach’ in a clinic that appeared for entertainment sake.
So for Kobe’s fans, who are passionate about Kobe’s contribution to the sport, may be upset that Nike has just made used of their basketball idol as nothing more than a puppet entertainer and a walking advertisement in Asia – which explains why it is free as you can’t ask people to pay to watch your advertisement!
All Nike the sponsor wanted to achieve was for people to go away from the event having a positive feeling about Nike – that they are “kind” to make it free. : ) Its for the branding sake of Nike and not so much of celebrating Kobe’s talents, which is the sad reality of what happens when sports get commercialised.
i agree with Keith. I must say, it is already a blessing to see one of the greatest player ever to play this game. And like what Keith said, it is FREE ! That was the best evening i ever had.
Keith, I completely agree with you. I’m just thankful I got to listen to Kobe speak and show us what he’s all about.
I apologize as this comment might spark negativity.
Whether it be 40minutes or 4minutes, it’s still awesome to see Kobe Bryant in person. Those who didn’t enjoy seeing him, aren’t Kobe Bryant fans, but just plain basketball fans.
http://www.nikebasketball.com.sg/kobeasiatour/index.html
It doesnt even say he will be playing in a match! He’s here to guide the players in the coaching clinic, and even that little bit of wisdom was a nugget of gold for me.
That’s why Nike gave the tickets to everyone for FREE. So yeah, those who paid to buy the tickets off the disgusting people who sold for like $50 plus, why on earth did you expect so much? (I saw a guy trying to sell his tickets at $250, and my seats were better than his.)
Not to complain against the writer of this article, I just feel that I have to say all this. To me, seeing Kobe Bryant for that 40minutes made my whole year. Nike was kind enough to give the tickets for free, so that everyone in Singapore regardless of income could “afford” to go to watch Kobe. But some inconsiderate people queued up and sold their tickets for profit! On facebook in the Kobe’s Asia tour singapore page, so many people were trying to sell their tickets, which shows about just as much people were denied to watch Kobe.
Nike gave the tickets for FREE. Kobe came, gave advice to the players and everyone in the crowd who listened, gave the players an experience of a lifetime, taught everyone two moves that can be practically applied in most aspects of the game, threw out autographed balls to the crowd, gave two lucky fans his shoes, and left to a standing ovation. All of this for FREE.