Last week, Kobe traveled to Chicago to attend a conference organized by the National Association of Convenience Stores, where athletes attending the conference usually take pictures and sign autographs, and Kobe took pictures, but only after he introduced the drink, and then, next, Kobe described what makes the drink different.

Kobe is no longer just expanding awareness as he did when he first introduced BodyArmor in 2012, a brand that has gone from $3 million in annual sales that year to nearly $200 million today, a rate comparable to that earned in the workhorse Hao "Weiyangworld," whether it's through storytelling, writing, or embedding the former athlete's identity into the product. Whether it's through storytelling, writing, or putting a former athlete's identity into a product, Kobe has contributed greatly to the brand's growth, and he dreams every day of getting a piece of the pie from the two giants, Gatorade and Powerade.

Ambition, moreover, goes far beyond that; in Kobe's brain, the space he has set aside is always at number one, and he already has a plan in place to make BodyArmor the sports drink brand boss by 2025. "I told him from the beginning that only one brand out of 100 can achieve that status, and we only have a 1% chance." Repel said, "But saying that made him even more excited, so what the hell is going on?" "A whole bunch of people told me when I was a kid that very few people make it to the NBA." Kobe said, "And the odds were even lower than that in their mouths."

A gifted writer as well as a storyteller, Kobe has more experience in marketing than is familiar to the outside world, having been a major partner in the California advertising agency Zambezi back in his playing days, but he has always chosen to keep a low profile.

"The advertising industry is very competitive." Kobe said, "I don't know how much more business we could get that we've won if everyone knew I was part of this company."

When Kobe appeared in the NBA Finals in 2009, Zambezi had planned an ad for Vitaminwater, endorsed by his rival Howard.

"I wrote the ad plan at the time." Kobe said.

His "obsession is in the nature of things" philosophy has been applied to the lines of a BodyArmor commercial he wrote earlier this year, and his poetic open letter, "To Dear Basketball," which he posted last year in The Players' Tribune, has been adapted into a short animated film that has been widely recognized. Kobe won't say the word "Oscar," and he doesn't want to get too optimistic, but he's probably already thought about who to thank.

"I'm tired of telling people that I love the business as much as I love basketball. Because, they're always going to look at me like I have three heads." Kobe said, "But that's what I do."

When Repl talks to Kobe about the evolution of bottle caps, he may smile, but he keeps listening, as inquisitive as he was when he was learning basketball.

Nike executives have said on more than one occasion that of all the players who have collaborated on signature shoes, Kobe is the most demanding.