I am legitimately afraid for founders who show up to meetings/ pitches unprepared.
Kobe Bryant was an idol of mine growing up, and the stories of his obsessive preparation and competitiveness are simply incredible. He is an extremely smart, driven person. I can envision him being ruthless.
As a big Kobe fan, I'm excited to see what his career will be like post career. I hope he takes a hands-on approach with this venture rather than just have his money managed. There's a lot he can bring from playing competitive basketball to the startup world.
I'd certainly give him a better chance at success than most athletes have post career. He might be the next Magic Johnson. But as Michael Jordan has shown, tenacity and work ethic on the court don't necessarily translate to business success.
$100M for a seed fund, right? Can't imagine $100M being a serious play for anything other than a seed fund. I think he'd make a good board member, not so much as an early stage investor.
bryant|stibel has actually been investing for a couple years out of a smaller fund in LA but they've been fairly low key about it. this seems to be the big coming out party, with a much larger fund to play with now that kobe is "retired". =)
[+] [-] btrautsc|9 years ago|reply
Kobe Bryant was an idol of mine growing up, and the stories of his obsessive preparation and competitiveness are simply incredible. He is an extremely smart, driven person. I can envision him being ruthless.
Link to a random Olympics all night training session story: http://www.businessinsider.com/kobe-bryant-woke-up-at-4-am-t...
[+] [-] ceocoder|9 years ago|reply
[1] http://www.nba.com/2011/news/03/11/kobe-bryant-practice.ap/
[+] [-] soperj|9 years ago|reply
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