Kobe Bryant takes his podcast ‘The Punies’ to CHOC for a lesson in conquering self-doubt

ORANGE — Even Kobe Bryant battles nagging self-doubt.

“Always did and still do,” he said, Monday, Sept. 24.

That universal human vulnerability gave Bryant the idea for “The Punies,” his kid-focused sports podcast that debuted a month ago.

“When we started working on it, I thought, ‘Is this really a good idea? Is it great, or is it not so great?’” the five-time NBA champion admitted.

But now that the podcast has the blessing of his three daughters, he’s feeling pretty confident about it. “Whenever we get in the car, my youngest yells, ‘Play Puny! Play Puny!’” Bryant said. “She’s really into it.”

Bryant took his show on the road Monday, with a performance at Children’s Hospital of Orange County.

Young patients – some tethered to IVs, some bald, some in wheelchairs – crowded into CHOC’s recording studio to hear a story about Puny Pete and his latest adventure. Ever-anxious Puny wants to join his friends in athletic activities, but worries that a humiliating flub will bruise both body and pride.

Quietly observing, Bryant sat at a table with his podcast’s six actors as they comically emoted their way through the 15-minute program.

Each episode features a different sport. Puny initially shies away from baseball or basketball or soccer, only to find that trying is more fun than avoiding. Reminiscent of the radio variety series “Prairie Home Companion,” the story is told with humor, music, sound effects and commercials for fictional products.

The CHOC performance included guest star Sydney Sigafus, 17, a Tustin resident who underwent treatment for bone cancer at the hospital. Now in remission, the Foothill High senior played basketball for her school’s junior varsity team before surgery forced her to drop out.

“I’m definitely familiar with that negative self-talk: ‘I’m a terrible player, my coach doesn’t like me,’” Sigafus said.

Bryant sat beside Sigafus during the reading.

“I’m an anchor on FTV (Foothill’s news program), so I’m kind of used to reading – but not right next to Kobe Bryant in a studio full of kids,” Sigafus said, laughing.

Afterward, Bryant crouched way, way down to chat with children and sign photographs.

Chloe Nguyen, 10, recovering from a serious bout of flu, wore a Lakers jersey and hat for the thrilling event.

“It’s cool because it’s really hard to get to meet him,” the Corona girl said, with a dose of understatement.

In a post-game interview, Bryant pronounced the podcast “here for life.”

Bryant, who won an Academy Award for last year’s short animated film “Dear Basketball,” directs and produces “The Punies.” Veteran television writer Jon Haller composes the dialogue.

“It goes back to the old days when there was no television and you had to capture the audience’s attention with words,” Bryant said. “Two outs in the ninth inning – that’s an attention grabber. I wanted to create the same sort of suspense: What is Puny going to do next?”

“Sandlot,” a movie about an awkward new kid in town who joins a scrappy neighborhood baseball team, served as inspiration. “My family watches it every Fourth of July,” Bryant said.

A new “Punies” is released every Saturday morning on Apple Podcasts, Google Play Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn, Spotify and iHeart Radio.

Not surprisingly, both of Bryant’s older daughters are athletes. Natalia, 15, plays volleyball and Gianna, 12, basketball. And 20-month-old Bianka Bella already shows mom Vanessa’s knack for dancing, Bryant boasted.

What advice does he give them when those internal voices start planting seeds of doubt?

“Don’t let your thoughts distract you,” Bryant said. “Whatever you are imagining is much worse than things actually turn out to be.”