YMMV / Dear Basketball

• Harsher in Hindsight:
  • The entire short becomes much more powerful given Bryant's sudden death in a helicopter crash in January of 2020 at only 41 years old. His 13-year old daughter was also a victim. It’s the closest Kobe ever came to giving his Hall of Fame induction speech.
  • The short ends with him walking to a tunnel, going into the light. Right in the feels.
• Tear Jerker: Overall, the short has a rather melancholy tone as Bryant contemplates the end. Even more so given the tragic sudden deaths of Kobe and his daughter Gianna in a helicopter crash in early 2020 at only 41 and 13 years old respectively. Many radio stations in Los Angeles, and possibly elsewhere, played the poem in his honor the day after the tragedy.