He’d text her back in like five minutes; he was so awesome: Naomi Osaka's agent reveals how she was mentored by NBA legend Kobe Bryant
Japanese tennis sensation Naomi Osaka was once mentored by basketball legend Kobe Bryant when she was at the peak of her game, as revealed by her agent Stuart Duguid.
The 25-year-old rose to fame after defeating tennis legend Serena Williams to win her first Grand Slam title at the 2018 US Open. Following that, Osaka went on to win three more Major titles and became the World No. 1 in the process.
She was even regarded as the successor to the 23-time Grand Slam champion's throne on the WTA tour.
However, Osaka's 2022 season has been underwhelming. Her streak of winning at least one Grand Slam every year since 2018 came to an end, and she failed to win a WTA title this year. Consequently, her ranking has fallen significantly as well.
Naomi Osaka's agent and business partner Stuart Duguid stated in an interview with the Boardroom how the star sought advice from Kobe Bryant — who suffered an untimely death due to a helicopter crash in 2020 — after losing at the 2019 French Open and Wimbledon.
"Naomi played the French Open and lost in the third round when she was No. 1. She said, ‘I was able to get to No. 1 relatively smoothly, but now I’m here and that’s what feels like the challenge. People want to beat me every single match'," Duguid said.
"We got back from Wimbledon on a Tuesday afternoon and sent him an email. He got right back to us and said, 'Be at my office at 9 AM tomorrow'."
Duguid went on to say that he and his wife drove Naomi Osaka to Bryant's office since she was really shy before meeting him. She was instantly uplifted, however, after speaking with the Los Angeles Lakers star, and the two immediately became close.
"Naomi was pretty shy at the time, so my wife and I went and picked her up and drove her to Orange County. When we got to the office we said, ‘Alright, on you go!’ She thought we were all gonna go together and sit down with him, but we knew if we told her in advance that it was a one-on-one she’d probably be too nervous," Duguid said.
"She came out and said, ‘That was the most fascinating hour and a half of my entire life.' From that point, they became very close. He had a big impact on her and was such a generous individual with time and [demonstrated such a] willingness to help. He’d text her back in like five minutes; he was so awesome," he added.
"He was Naomi Osaka's mentor for so many things from mental health to sportsmanship" - Stuart Duguid's wife Carly Duguid
Kobe Bryant was Naomi Osaka's mentor for many things, including mental health and sportsmanship, according to Stuart Duguid's wife Carly Duguid. Bryant was famous for his "mamba mentality" and he made sure to pass some of that on to Osaka.
"He was Naomi’s mentor for so many things, from mental health to sportsmanship. Stu [Stuart Duguid] and I learned so much from him, not just speaking to him, but hearing from Naomi based on conversations they had," she said.