“Love Always,” -KB.

The final written words from one of Missouri basketball’s greatest players ever stare back at the 23-year-old himself as he watches Instagram’s red heart icon repeatedly disappear and reappear in the top right corner of his phone screen. 

It had been less than 10 minutes, and already Kobe Brown’s tribute video to head coach Dennis Gates, his teammates and the program had already received a plethora of attention on social media. Comments poured in, wishing Brown good luck on his future endeavors and thanking him for his time as a Tiger:

“Love you brother, keep paving the way.” “Be great Kob!!” “True son thru & thru.” 

That gratitude epitomized the general sentiment from Missouri’s faithful, though some weren’t so fond of hearing the news they had been dreading. 

In their most wishful thinking, Brown would’ve released a separate video — one with a separate message attached, reading: “One More Year,” -KB … the same message fans chanted on senior night when Brown’s name was called during the postgame festivities.

Fans wished for a last go-round with one of the SEC’s premier scorers, but unfortunately, that wasn’t the case — Brown made his decision to remain draft-eligible, taking on the challenge of basketball at the next level. 

However, that didn’t mean he wasn’t as heartbroken as his fans. 

“Putting my time at Mizzou into words is incredibly difficult,” Brown wrote in a thank-you message to Missouri. “As I think about how I want to be remembered, it’s not just how I was on the stat line, but how people knew me off the court. I want to be remembered as a genuine guy.”

Kobe Brown will be remembered as that guy. He made sure his fans knew he cared for them as well, holding meet and greets and happily lining up to high-five members of the student section after home games. He made sure that fans felt heard and thought of when discussing his decision, but most importantly, he made sure to have fun.

“These last four years have been some of the best years of my life,” Brown said in his goodbye video. “I really enjoyed playing for the Black and Gold … [and] I couldn’t be happier to call Mizzou home, but with that being said, it’s time for me to chase my dreams.

“I’m staying in the NBA Draft. M-I-Z.”

This is the Kobe Brown story: The player who changed Missouri basketball for good.

Long before Brown was the face of the Tigers, he was a high school senior who had a talent that earned him multiple Division I basketball offers and whose dream it was to make it to the NBA. 

“The NBA means everything to me,” Brown wrote in his thank-you message. “Obviously, it’s everyone’s dream to play in the NBA as a kid, but only a few of us get the chance to [do so]. I’ve been blessed enough to be one of those people that’s a part of that small percent.”

Before he could make it to the league, however, Brown had to go to college. He was excited — to say the least — but little did he know, the beginning of his collegiate  career was all but simple.

It all began with a coach’s firing. 

Brown was initially committed to Texas A&M, intending to join head coach Billy Kennedy and the Aggies in College Station on a prospective path to the NBA. He made the visit, signed the letter and even wore the jersey for a picture before his plans were changed: Kennedy was out, and so was Brown. 

The Aggies had a strong run under the veteran head coach, but a less-than-ideal year in Kennedy’s eighth season saw the program ready to move forward with a new coach. His firing cleared Brown’s obligation to the Aggies, leaving the door open for the senior to explore other options, which led him further north — to the Midwest. 

Brown ultimately signed with Missouri, joining head coach Cuonzo Martin and the Tigers to officially mark the start of his college basketball journey.

Right away, Brown knew he was different from other prospects. Growing up in an era where positions in basketball were more formalities than anything else, the 6-foot-7, 220 pound “combo-guard” (as he called himself), was far above other guards in terms of size. 

Seeing as such, the 18-year-old needed to prove his scoring ability was also far above others at his position. The only problem at hand was that he needed to be given the chance to do so first. 

“When we first came in, we weren’t really super accepted at Mizzou,” Brown’s father, Greg, told KOMU. “I think they had more expectations for the other two freshmen that came in with him.” 

At the time, Greg Brown was correct. Martin was responsible for bringing Tray Jackson and Mario McKinney Jr. — a four-star duo — to the program alongside Kobe. Despite his size, Brown was only given a three-star rating by 247 Sports, putting his development at a lower priority than that of his incoming teammates.

But that didn’t stop the young guard. Instead of accepting a role of lesser importance, Brown made sure to work as hard as possible to earn a spot in the rotation. 

And the result? 

At the end of the season, the freshman averaged more points per game than both Jackson and McKinney Jr. combined. He had left a lasting impression and earned his spot on coach Cuonzo’s squad for the next few years.

Following that season, neither Jackson nor McKinney stuck around, both realizing that they had effectively lost their playing time to Brown. The two former four-stars transferred out, leaving Kobe to continue improving.

The guard did just that, averaging more points in every season at a higher shooting percentage than the last, while simultaneously putting up consistent steal, rebound and block totals.

By the time Martin was replaced with head coach Dennis Gates in 2022, Brown had already established himself as one of the best players to don the Black and Gold in recent memory. The pairing of the rising senior with Gates only further cemented  Brown’s legacy in Columbia. 

Entering the 2022-23 season, the Tigers had been without an NCAA tournament win for 13 years. Martin didn’t change that, but Gates and Brown sought out to make it happen. 

Under his new head coach, Kobe had the most efficient season of his career, averaging 15.8 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game on 55.7% shooting from the field and 45.5% from 3 — enough to earn him an All-SEC first team nod. 

But while his final stats may be what’s remembered, they don’t paint the full picture of Brown’s impact . At times, Brown would give the Tigers a much needed boost on offense with his confidence behind the arc, while other times he would foster ball-movement in a way that no other player could. His goal was simply to help his team win. 

In fact, last season, Brown scored 30 in back-to-back games to help the Tigers earn two crucial wins. But he won’t take all of the credit, however, which was just another way that Gates and Brown brought a winning culture to Missouri basketball.

“Just being together [with my teammates] and staying connected allows me to play well,” Brown said after the Tigers’ victory over Kentucky last December. “We’re just a bunch of guys that love each other and like to play basketball. Whenever you have that, it makes things easier.” 

So, with a top-10 placement for single rebounds recorded in a game in Missouri history, Brown heads to the next step of his basketball career with a tangible record, but even more so, an intangible one.

Without Brown, the Tigers would not have won more conference games than they had since 2013. They would not have won a first-round game in the NCAA tournament … or perhaps they would not have made the tournament at all. 

Kobe Brown was Missouri’s best player. He changed the program with his stats, his poise and his smile, too.

“We always want to keep Missouri fans happy,” Brown said. “We feed off of them.” 

If Brown fed off of the Tiger faithful, like he’s always been known to, then they surely fed off of his energy as well. In four years, the senior accomplished more for the Black and Gold than anyone else did in a decade. 

But his story doesn’t stop after college.

According to multiple sites, Kobe is projected to be picked in the second round of the NBA Draft. Before that happens, though, he will once again need his chance to show what he can bring to a professional franchise through pre-draft workouts, which only the Indiana Pacers and Portland Trail Blazers have given him so far. 

“I definitely want to show off my versatility,” Brown said after his pre-draft workout with the Blazers. “I want to show that I can do different things on the court. I’m not limited to one thing. That’s my biggest goal and biggest thing to prove to everyone.”

While Brown is out to prove himself at the NBA level, he’ll certainly be grateful for whatever team lets him realize his dream — and he isn’t picking favorites, yet. 

“I’ve worked so hard day in and day out,” Brown wrote in his thank-you message. “It’s still surreal. I’m still processing that I actually have a high chance of being in the NBA.” 

As Brown awaits the call on draft night, he’s only left to anticipate and hope that his time in the league is everything he’s hoping it to be. 

But the biggest thing he’s looking forward to showing off was the very thing that set him apart from the get-go: size. 

“[The NBA] allows guys like myself to be themselves,” Brown said after his Portland workout. “A lot of times, like in college, being bigger than most [means] that some bumps get you called for fouls, and then you’re out of the game.”

“Just playing with guys like this, who can take the hit and give a hit, makes it more fun,” Brown added. “I’m pretty good as far as physicality goes. I’m just ready to get in and see how actual rostered guys play. I’m ready to get a feel for it.”

Brown is ready to move forward. He’s given his all to his teammates, coaches and fans, and never stopped striving to improve. But while his time with the Tigers may have come to a close, it isn’t fully goodbye. 

“Once a Tiger, always a Tiger,” Brown reiterated in his thank-you message. “I know I won’t be on campus next year, but this isn’t the last you’ll see of me. Thank you to the state of Missouri, the city of Columbia, the fans, my teammates and coaches … you’ve all meant everything to me.”

In a way, Brown’s final message to Missouri fans was a full-circle moment. One that the senior has likely gone through in his head again and again, even while watching the likes pour in on his tribute video. 

And in that video, Brown’s final spoken letters — which were the same ones he chanted when he first committed to Missouri – spoke levels.

Even though he’s changing his three-letter set from M-I-Z to NBA, Brown is going to go down as one of the biggest names to ever take the court for the Tigers. He led Missouri through the past four seasons, helping it earn two NCAA tournament berths and a first-round victory for the first time in 13 seasons, even after losing the head coach that first recruited him to Columbia.

In short, the senior guard has been the program’s heart and soul for the last four seasons — which is special in its own right — but it wasn’t just that. He was different.

He was, and will continue to be, Kobe Brown — Missouri basketball’s savior. 

The 2023 NBA Draft is set for Thursday, June 22 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Coverage will begin on ESPN at 7 p.m. CST. 

Edited by Quentin Corpuel I qcorpuel@themaneater.com

Copy edited by Grace Knight