August 23, 1978 – One of the greatest players to grace the hardwood was born. Kobe Bryant was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and is the starting shooting guard and leader of the Los Angeles Lakers. As a high school athlete, he was ranked as the best baller in the country. He decided to take his talents straight to the NBA and skipped college. Not many could make this move and be successful, but not many are in the same caliber as Kobe. He has led the Lakers to five championships, with the first three coming as a three-peat and the other two as back-to-back victories. Besides multiple seasons as an all-star, a couple Finals MVP awards, a couple scoring champion awards, etc; Kobe’s offensive dominance has put him second in most points scored in one game (81 points), only second to Wilt’s 100 points! Kobe has achieved many awards in his active career, but what sets him apart from any ball player is his will to win and his work ethic. Besides, the God given talent, Kobe finds ways to improve his game so that he is always maximizing his potential and the potential of his team. Kobe is the definition of a gymrat and eat, breathes and lives basketball. #BallSoHard #GOAT #OneOfMyFavoriteAthletes #LA #Lakers
August 23, 1982 – Natalie Coughlin was born in Vallejo, California and is of Irish and Filipino ancestry. She is a professional, international swimmer, who took her first swim at the very early age of 10 months! Coughlin is a 12-time Olympic medalist, with her 12th medal coming in bronze in the 4x100m freestyle. #GoUSA #FilipinosStandUp
August 23, 1988 – The man who put Asian American ballers on the NBA map was born. Jeremy Lin was born in Los Angeles, Californa and raised in the Bay Area. He is currently one of the point guards for the Houston Rockets but made most of his noise aka “linsanity” when he was a New York Knick. When he was given the chance to be the starting point guard for the Knicks, Lin took full advantage and literally balled so hard! He led the Knicks to an unbelievable win streak and showed the world what he was capable of. It was said that after being cut from a few teams, he started gaining recognition during an NBA Summer Pro League, where he schooled players with the likes of John Wall. #BallSoHard #AsianAmericansStandUp
Happy Birthday Kobe Bryant, Natalie Coughlin and Jeremy Lin!