Kobe Bryant criticized after calling out one of his girls youth basketball players for missing a game for a dance recital

AP Photo/Ron Schwane

Kobe Bryant.

• Kobe Bryant called out one of the players on the girls youth basketball team he coaches for missing a game for a dance recital in an Instagram post.
• Bryant later amended the post, saying that her absence meant "she enjoyed dance more than ball which is fine," and that "Now? She eats sleeps and breathes the game."
• Some fans on social media called out Bryant for the post, but Kobe said he was just trying to explain why the girl wasn't in the picture.
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Kobe Bryant is not a fan of participation trophies.

On Tuesday, Bryant shared an image of the fourth-place trophy the youth girls basketball team he coaches won two years ago, writing in the caption that the players all wanted to "throw it away" after their disappointing finish. Bryant told them to keep the trophy as motivation.

On Wednesday Bryant went a step further, sharing an image of the team after winning the trophy. In the original caption that accompanied the post, Bryant wrote "Here's our fourth place "winners" picture lol six of the kids in the picture stayed with me and worked every single day to get better and continue to work to this day. The 7th player (not in pic) missed this game for a dance recital so that should tell you where her focus was at this time."

The original post was screen-grabbed by Sports Illustrated.

Bryant would later amend the caption to be a bit less overtly critical of the player that chose to perform in her dance recital. 

"The 7th player (not in pic) missed this game for a dance recital so that should tell you where her focus was at this time, meaning she enjoyed dance more than ball which is fine," Bryant wrote in the new post. "Now? She eats sleeps and breathes the game."

Still, some basketball fans caught Kobe's original caption and took issue with his decision to call out one of his players.

Kobe responded by saying he was just trying to explain why the seventh player wasn't pictured.

Whether you're an NBA teammate of his or a player on his youth basketball team, it appears Bryant expects a full commitment to the Mamba Mentality.

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