Kobe Bryant Wins Oscar For Animated Short Film: ‘Dear Basketball’ [VIDEO]

Kobe Bryant has several accolades to his name: five NBA championships, two Finals MVP Awards, and 18 All-Star honors, and now he can add an Oscar to his resume.

Kobe Bryant wins Oscar

The 39-year-old former Lakers guard won an Academy Award on Sunday night for his work on the animated short film Dear Basketball, along with veteran Disney animator Glen Keane.

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The short film is based on a poem Bryant wrote in 2015 announcing his retirement from basketball, which came in 2016.

Bryant’s poem begins: “Dear Basketball, from the moment I started rolling my dad’s tube socks, and shooting imaginary game-winning shots in the Great Western Forum, I knew one thing was real: I fell in love with you.”

It reflects on how time is running out. “I can’t love you obsessively for much longer,” it says. “This season is all I have left to give. My heart can take the pounding, my mind can handle the grind. But my body knows it’s time to say goodbye.”

It ends by counting down the final five seconds on a game clock.

In his speech, Kobe thanked Verizon and other companies for helping the film get made, as well as his wife and his three children, whom he said he loved in Italian. Bryant has spoken the language fluently for years.