Nickelodeon Game Shakers’ star Sheldon Bailey has made a name for himself on television as a basketball body double for NBA Superstars such as LeBron James, Shaquille O’Neal, and the late Kobe Bryant.
Bailey will premiere his short film Adulting at both the 10th Annual Charlotte Black Film and Music Festival and San Diego Black Film Festival this year.
Speaking of Kobe Bryant, Bailey recently shared with me that he recalled a conversation with the Lakers’ great on the set of the Guitar Hero commercial that made its debut in 2008.
“I stood in for Kobe, but I also worked on multiple projects with Kobe Bryant. I would say six or seven commercials in various ways. I was always impressed by him, but the most that I got to talk with him was on the guitar hero commercials, and I talked him about when he spoke to us at the Adidas All-American camp whenever I was a kid,” Bailey told me during a recent phone interview.
“I was like 16 years old, and he was an NBA superstar and just married his wife [Vanessa]. He pulled up in a limousine, and he had this beautiful wife, and all the kids are tripping, and like oh my god,, it’s Kobe Bryant. His speech about basketball was different, and how he approached the game really opened up my mind with his preparation and the mental edge he had on the game was incredible.”
Bailey also detailed how he started the conversation with Bryant.
“When I opened up our conversation with that, his guard went down, not that it was up, but he opened up. We had our conversation for about 20 minutes, and his father coached me at a Japanese All-Star game. So, we talked about that as well, and very happy that he took the time to talk to me. It was like he was very intentive, and I witness him play with kids on set, and one of the workers on set Skyped her son, and Kobe took time to talk to him. Every time I saw him on any other set, he was cool.”
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Kobe Bryant Dies in a Helicopter Crash
On January 26, TMZ reported that the Los Angeles Lakers’ great had died in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California. Bryant was 41 years old. Later on that day, the controversial then reported that Bryant’s second-oldest daughter Gianna Maria-Onore [Gigi] was also on board when the helicopter crash along with seven other victims.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Los Angeles great along with his daughter were en route to play basketball at his Mamba Academy near Thousand Oaks. When news broke numerous members of the basketball players, sports figures, and celebrities sent their condolences to Bryant’s family and the rest of the fallen victims in the crash.
Bryants’ mentor Michael Jordan was shocked by the news.
“I am in shock over the tragic news of Kobe’s and Gianna’s passing. Words can’t describe the pain I’m feeling. I loved Kobe – he was like a little brother to me. We used to talk often and I will miss those conversations very much,” said Jordan, per Sports Illustrated. “He was a fierce competitor, one of the greats of the game and a creative force. Kobe was also an amazing dad who loved his family deeply – and took great pride in his daughter’s love for the game of basketball. Yvette joins me in sending my deepest condolences to Vanessa, the Lakers organization and basketball fans around the world.”
Shaquille O’Neal who won three championships with Bryant in the early 2000s said there are no words to express the pain he was going through.
“There’s no words to express the pain I’m going through with this tragedy of losing my neice Gigi & my brother @kobebryant I love u and u will be missed. My condolences goes out to the Bryant family and the families of the other passengers on board. IM SICK RIGHT NOW,” O’Neal said on Twitter.
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Kobe Bryant’s Former Body-Double Recalls a Conversation They Had on Guitar Hero Commercial Set