Kobe Bryant basketball poem becomes toon

Kobe Bryant’s lauded basketball retirement poem is being turned into a short animated film by the Sports Illustrated Group.

NBA legend Bryant’s new prodco, Kobe Studios, is working with Sports Illustrated and ITV-backed Believe Entertainment Group to create Dear Basketball, as well as a series of mini documentaries taking viewers behind the scenes of the animation process.

The show will debut on Sports Illustrated’s SI.com. It will see Bryant narrating, with Glen Keane, who is behind animated features such as Aladdin and The Little Mermaid helming production.

Dear Basketball is based on the retirement letter Bryant posted on The Players’ Tribune in November 2015, which has become an important cultural item, with poets and scholars analysing its content.

“This season is all I have left to give.” @kobebryant pens a letter to basketball: https://t.co/hu5CUoXHhJ pic.twitter.com/1ogKdH7buP

— The Players’ Tribune (@PlayersTribune) November 29, 2015