KEY POINTS

  • Kobe Bryant reached out to Paulo Coelho about a possible book collaboration
  • Coelho said in an interview that Kobe called him for the project
  • He said that he will delete the drafts for the book “has lost its purpose”

After learning that Kobe Bryant had passed away, a Brazilian writer and novelist Paulo Coelho may do something that the fans would urge him to not do.

Coelho went to his social media account to mourn the passing of the Los Angeles Lakers legend, calling him more than a great player. He also posted a screenshot of the brief conversation that they had last year about plans of coming up with a book together, where both parties agreed.

The information about the book, though, was not disclosed.

Despite the idea of deleting the drafts, indicating that the Brazilian already started working on it, some fans think he should think twice about it.

A collaboration between the two may have started a long time ago. Per Basquetplus.com article posted in September 2018, the popular author confirmed via an interview with OUL Esporte that the former NBA MVP reached out to him via phone call of possible collaboration for a book. "Kobe Bryant called me on the phone about three months ago. He wanted us to do something together, maybe a four-handed book, to work on par,” said the 72-year old that was roughly translated from the Spanish language. “Surely we'll talk again soon," he added.

This is no surprise as Coelho’s book “The Alchemist”, which was written around 30 years ago, was “Black Mamba’s” favorite book. Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic reported that Kobe already read the book several times that he already planned about doing it with the renowned writer.

Coelho has written over 30 books including The Alchemist, which is believed to be a piece about finding your own destiny, and The Winner Stands Alone, which is about the relentless pursuit of luxury and success overshadows what the heart wants.

Kobe and her daughter Gianna were killed in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, CA as they were on their way to Mamba Sports Academy for a basketball game. Several personalities, mostly from the sports industry and celebrities, sent their condolences to the NBA great and his family.

Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant attends the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 Draw Ceremony at Shenzhen Bay Arena in Shenzhen, China, March 16, 2019. Lintao Zhang/Getty Images
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