TCU Horned Frogs’ new transfer Hailey Van Lith has a lot of impressive things to talk about and show off, and she not short of it, eve including personal gifts from basketball legends.
In a 2020 interview, Hailey Van Lith showcased her collection of basketball-related memorabilia including game balls, posters, trophies, and of course, shoes. Some of her shoes were apparently more special than others, as they were from late basketball legend Kobe Bryant.
“So, these are the Kobe BMs,” she said in the video. “These are the first shoes that he gave me when I met him. So, these are probably one of my favorites. Kobe Bryant literally handed me these.”
The TCU Horned Frogs are set to face New Orleans on Sunday, followed by a game with Texas State.
Hailey Van Lith Taking on The Mamba Mentality
Hailey, more than just shoes coming from the late Black mamba himself, is known for expressing her channeling the “mamba mentality,” something that Kobe Bryant was known for inspiring a lot of athletes and aspiring ones when he first coined the term and concept.
In August, Hailey Van Lith played for the US team for the FIBA 3×3 tournament and bagged the bronze medal it. She credited her adapting the mamba mentality and Kobe’s influence on her for her success.
“I think Kobe would be proud as heck of me for not letting us lose that last game,” she said. “Sometimes you can’t control the outcomes like that last game. I’m not gonna lie, it was tough. It was a tough situation for us to win it, and we just didn’t sulk in it. That’s the Kobe mentality. It’s like, ‘f*** it,’ go out and win the next game.”
The late basketball legend once explained this mindset that he was known for, saying:
“Mamba mentality is all about focusing on the process and trusting in the hard work when it matters most. It’s the ultimate mantra for the competitive spirit. It started just as a hashtag that came to me one day, and it’s grown into something, athletes and even non-athletes, embrace as a mindset.”
Hailey Van Lith played for 35 minutes for her Horned Frogs debut, scoring 21 points and 5 rebounds. Her season-opening performance made her the first Power 5 transfer in women’s college basketball record to score more than 20 points in a season-opener game, more than five rebounds, assists, and steals.
For more sports content:
Follow us @HardwoodHeroics for your NBA and college basketball reading fix. You can reach out to Dan Agulto through email at papadanph@gmail.com. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest sports news, click here!
Dan has been active in sports since 2016 and has worked behind the scenes as a scriptwriter for basketball, volleyball, and other sports. At a time, Dan has also been working as a sports commentator for CBA Pilipinas. During the pandemic, he has also been actively writing betting articles for CashBet and BetNow.
