Kobe Bryant to Open Mamba Sports Academy to Train Young Athletes

Rob Goldberg @TheRobGoldbergFeatured ColumnistDecember 3, 2018

Kobe Bryant arrives at the 90th Academy Awards Nominees Luncheon at The Beverly Hilton hotel on Monday, Feb. 5, 2018, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)

Jordan Strauss/Associated Press

Former NBA star Kobe Bryant will open the Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks, California, as a multisport training center for young athletes.

Kobe Bryant @kobebryant
Game on. 🙌🏾 https://t.co/jo5pnD241c #MambaMentality https://t.co/0XqRwtXKTV

Mamba Sports Academy @MambaSportsHQ
We train athletes the MAMBA way | Full Circle + Mamba Mentality https://t.co/oY2Wp9uL7L

Arash Markazi of ESPN provided a breakdown of the enormous facility:

Arash Markazi @ArashMarkazi
The Mamba Sports Academy is a 100,000 square-foot facility in Thousand Oaks, which operates five basketball courts, five volleyball courts, two beach volleyball courts, a turf field, an esports training ground, batting cages, pitching mounds and a Gracie Barra jiu jitsu school. https://t.co/maiLJjN7qH

The Sports Academy initially opened in 2016 and currently supports 50,000 athletes but the center will rebrand under Bryant and potentially open new facilities in the future. The changes are expected to be completed by January of 2019, per the official release.

"Sports Academy has perfected the art and science of athletic training, from elite players to young kids getting started," Bryant said. "MAMBA Sports Academy is a natural expansion of my commitment to educating and empowering the next generation of kids through sports."

The 18-time NBA All-Star also made sure to note that he wants to add a "Mamba Mentality" to the programs.