“I thought a lot about Kobe Bryant”: When Paige Bueckers admitted reading Mamba Mentality book to cope with season ending injury

Paige Bueckers has long been a fan of the late great Kobe Bryant. The UConn Huskies star admitted in an interview with ESPN, first shown on YouTube on Nov. 8, 2023, that she drew inspiration from the Los Angeles Lakers legend after suffering a season-ending knee injury.

Bueckers tore the ACL in her left knee while playing a pickup game at the Werth Champions Center in August 2022. The injury devastated Bueckers as she missed the entire 2022-23 NCAA season. During her lengthy recovery process, she found solace in Bryant's book "The Mamba Mentality."

"When this injury first happened, I thought a lot about Kobe," Bueckers said (Timestamp 4:15). "I read "The Mamba Mentality" book and how he just looked at his injury as another way to prove people wrong and as another thing to accomplish."

"Kobe loved challenges, so anything that he could face that people had doubts that he could overcome, made him want to do it even more. His mentality, his approach, just how much he dedicated his life to the game."

Kobe Bryant faced several serious injuries during the latter stages of his NBA career. He ruptured his Achilles tendon in the game against the Golden State Warriors on April 12, 2013, and fractured his left knee against the Memphis Grizzlies on December 17, 2013. He also dealt with elbow and arm injuries during his time with the Lakers.

Paige Bueckers dealt another injury blow in the 2024-25 NCAA season

The injury bug struck Paige Bueckers once again in the 2024-25 NCAA season, with the UConn Huskies star spraining her left knee in the game against the Villanova Wildcats on Jan. 5. The injury occurred with 1:17 left in the third quarter after Bueckers and Villanova's Jasmine Bascoe battled for a loose ball.

Paige Bueckers of the UConn Huskies watches the game against the Georgetown Hoyas at Entertainment & Sports Arena on January 11, 2025 in Washington, DC. Photo: Getty

Paige Bueckers twisted her knee following their collision, causing concern among her Huskies teammates and coaches. Fortunately for UConn, Bueckers' injury wasn't deemed serious with Geno Auriemma comparing it to the one Azzi Fudd picked up against the Louisville Cardinals on Dec. 7.

Fudd missed just three games because of her right knee sprain and has since returned to full fitness. She has been superb in Bueckers' absence, averaging 22.0 points on 63.0% shooting in the wins over Xavier and Georgetown. She scored at least 20 points in both of those games after failing to reach that mark in her previous nine outings for UConn.