Kobe Bryant.

He could have had 71.

He could've had 91.

The main thing I want everybody and take away from that game is that man's discipline.

And that's why when people try to teach me, I'm like we held a month or 100.

What do you mean?

What was it like the first time you went up against Kobe Bryant and had to guard him?

1994 is when I got picked So that summer in orderto like not go back to the neighborhood kind of start maturing.

I got a place in California, and that's when I started playing basketball at the U.

C.

L A.

Men's Jim.

Anybody that came through L.

A.

During that period of time, I got a chance to see them ball, and all of a sudden we're up their plan and the young kid named Kobe shows up because he just got drafted by the Lakers and everybody then was still talking about the fact that Jerry West said he had the greatest work out that he had ever seen.

And so initially when he said that the Lakers had shot Nick Van Exel and Eddie Jones on the team.

That backcourt, they both made the All Star team.

And so Thio even add Kobe to that mix.

Everybody's like, Whoa, they got the nerve to draft the guard.

That's the first thing that everybody was saying.

And so when he came to the gym, there was a little there was a buzz around them.

And then all of a sudden he got a couple of chances toe like get the ball and do his thing, went to the basket and boomed out on everybody who he gave everybody respect from the beginning.

And here's another thing that happened.

So everybody's playing in the morning, gotta whatever, whatever eso Kobe and I afterwards, we went to this little spot in Santa Monica.

You know, we're trying to be athletes.

It was like, you know, after you work out, you know, athletes, they go get in the hot tub, you know, they go, you know, drink water and these, you know, special juices and whatever, whatever.

When we got done, I was ready to go kicking in L.

A.

He went back to the gym and I didn't realize the entire time that they set it up, that when we was hoping during the day he was going back at night, and that's when I knew that he really was gonna be a not only a special player, but also like bring a level of discipline and work ethic that really was just taking the game to a Michael Jordan type, you know, level of, you know, being immersed in the game.

24 73 65.

How soon, Jalen, while he's already in the n B A.

Did you start to notice?

Oh, he is.

His game is rounding out in a way that maybe I didn't even anticipate, even though you did see very early on that he had the work ethic right from the beginning.

But here's his problem.

He already had established vets on his team that we're stars in their own right, and I love shack just like you do.

But if you look at his history, my mood Abdul Raul Penny Hardaway.

He always found a way to feel with the other star on the team.

That was an absolute fat.

And so that summer I don't think I'm breaking any news here.

They had an altercation, a physical altercation, and clearly, who's gonna win?

One of those was shot.

And so when that happened, I remember saying that ain't gonna end well.

S o U l a Those guys that airmen on the team.

And then every time it's like, go put in Kobe, their shoulder slump like, uh oh, here we go.

You know, the teeth just pet, you know, gotta put him in the game and crowd would go crazy.

So it was unique playing on the opposite team, seeing how that dynamic Waas trying to keep him as the young fellow on the squad while the coaching staff, the management and the fans knew that he has something special that couldn't be contained.

You eventually faced him in the finals in 2000.

How did you guys approach guarding him individually and as a team?

One of the things that happened in my career, I don't think it's cute or cool.

I'm not proud of it playing in that Siri's Kobe went up for a jump shot because this is probably Game four, and the reason why this ended up happening because Games 12 and three I realized that Reggie, Mark Mullen, me, Travis, we can't guard him.

He went up for a jump shot and I purposely act like I was contesting the shot and made him come down on my foot and in my mind, I didn't want him to clearly break his ankle.

But in my mind would be great if he missed his next three games.

We have a we have a better chance to win.

And true Kobe fashion.

This dude only missed one game.

It became a signature moment when he returned in his early career because at Indiana, shock files out in the fourth quarter.

And there is the footage of Kobe Bryant making a couple of jump shots and he does the point to the ground.

Get down the lay down motion and a lot of people see LeBron James doing now.

Kobe was actually the first person to do that and it was crazy because he was fighting against Michael Jordan's legacy.

He was fighting against his teammates and then he was fighting against the opponent.

So when that shot went in, he wasn't even like talking trash to the Pacers.

That was for his bitch.

I can hear what field that was saying.

I can hear what players on the Ventress and pass the ball, move it.

He's been going like I got it.

And so that championship started the Validators great, the 81 point game when he's rolling.

At what point do you say to yourself?

I don't know what I can do to stop him at this point.

So here's the greatest thing that I want people to know about.

Kobe Bryant and I bring up the 2000 Finals when I intentionally tried to injure him as basketball karma 101 Kobe Bryant.

When you watch that game, I want everybody to go back and watch that game.

I don't care if he had 40.

Don't care if he had 50.

I don't care if he had 60.

He wasn't doing airplane wings around the court.

He wasn't thumping his chance and pointing up at the sky.

He wasn't jumping in nobody's face and saying nothing.

As a matter of fact, he didn't say a word and you know what else?

He didn't make no highlights where people show that game.

They show Kobe walking to the bench, putting one finger in the air or they show him making a three over me or they showed, like getting a steal in double pump, put it behind his head, dunking on the breakaway because it was so like all time great that he didn't need highlights.

But the most important thing that he did that day, he never talked trash, and he never made it about him.

And that's who.

Kobe, that that's the Mamba mentality everybody talking about like, What's the Mamba mentality?

That game.

Everybody wants to talk about the numbers he could have had 71 could have had 91.

The main thing I want everybody and take away from that game is that man.

This that man is focused.

And so as a professional, another team.

George, you know what you gotta do?

You gotta take it.

And that's why when people try and tease and I'm like WAY held a month into 100 what do you What are you talking about?

He's the remix.

The Michael Jordan.

If I have to score 44 in the game, I'm mad.

He didn't have 88.

That game embodies his all time greatest was sure the Times he was most locked in, which is all he's always locked in, right?

But when he was really cooking, they knew they knew even pre game because they said that there were times where he, you know, he'd fraternize a little bit in pregame or if you hit a shot.

He said, like, Hey, man, nice shot or whatever, but the days where he didn't say a word to you, that's when you knew you were in trouble.

Everything that people say that they like about the old school game, he didn't fraternize.

You ain't got no footage of Kobe exchange in jerseys after the game.

You ain't got no footage of him putting his jersey up, trying to talk to the guy who played with last year or somebody that has the same agent is him.

There's no footage of him doing that.

He was comfortable with being enemies.

With everybody in the league.

I ain't trying to be friends with none of y'all.

I saw how was she left?

Everybody was on his side, so I ain't dealing with none of y'all.

That's how his approach waas so him just saying What's up to you that just because he could talk.

He didn't even want to do that.

How did you and him eventually become friends?

Like when did that transformation happened?

Obviously, we met when he first got into the league.

I think we started to become more friends when I started to work in the media.

When they start to realize, you know, 95% of the things, but you're only saying 5% of what you really know And when he realized that I was like that Oh, man, he text me about whatever Call me about whatever I'm on TV.

There's so many times I'm doing SportsCenter.

I'm doing J and J.

He texted me, calling me, he doing all of that Like I was standing right next to him at his camp when he first talked to Dwight Howard.

And I'm gonna say this now because they made amends.

I've never said this before on wax when he got off the phone with Dwight Howard because I know what that conversation was.

I was standing right there.

Dwight was excited.

He was asking him about L.

A.

He was asking him about how he was gonna help him make him better.

He asked him.

You know about off court?

He asked about everything after he asked all of those questions.

You know what Kobe say?

I'm gonna show you, mofo how to get championships.

What do you think about that?

But here's the part that is the kicker that I would never say unless they made up.

I was at his basketball camp.

I spoke at his basketball camp, was standing right next to him.

He said shoes to my students for me doing it.

He got off the phone with Dwight Howard.

He said his head ain't in the right place.

This ain't gonna work.

And it didn't work for me.

Seeing him go from being like somebody that came into the league 17, 18 years old, to being an accomplished entrepreneur and winning awards with his production company.

One of the guys that worked on Jalen Jacoby for a long time.

Just so you know, he talking to me about our show and then he goes, snatch one of the people off our show.

You work for production company.

I was like, You owe me one.

And that's why I put together that anyone I was video for, So I don't know if you saw the thing on Twitter about your statue.

You know, e figured that neither.

I drink, Mr Bryant.

Yeah, I'll have a vodka martini.

How many dollars would you like anyone?

Very Yes.

Really?

No, I'm just playing just to Children.

At first, he was like, uh, didn't know if he wanted to clown me like that.

He's like, I got love for you.

Don't wanna kind of dish you.

You know what I'm saying?

Like I'm like, uh, it's all good.

And so I'm glad they're gonna be so many people that have voices on the Kobe Bryant legacy.

And I'm extremely proud that I was a part of that 81 point game and playing against him in the MBA finals and part of that video.

Because of those, they're gonna be notable things that continue to happen.

And to me, it's an honor to be a footnote.

A bug on the windshield.

Um, well, bump in the road like whatever you wanna call me for the legacy of Kobe Bryant, because any tribute that the world has for him number eight, number 24 statues, all of that, he definitely deserves it.

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