Lakers: Carmelo Anthony speaks out on Kobe Bryant's 'disrespectful sh-t'

Carmelo Anthony shares one of his favorite Kobe Bryant stories which led to Melo forming an unbreakable bond with the Lakers legend.

Now that Carmelo Anthony has joined the Los Angeles Lakers, the 10-time All-Star has the opportunity to build on the legacy Kobe Bryant created with the storied franchise. Melo and Kobe are brothers, but in a recent revelation, Anthony described how Bryant totally got on his nerves with his “disrespectful sh-t.”

Melo was a guest on a recent episode of Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson's All The Smoke podcast. Anthony had nothing but praise for the Lakers legend. He shared how one heated moment on the court actually led to these two eventually forming a unique bond:

“The greatest, man,” said Anthony about his 2009 Western Conference Finals matchup with Bryant, via Robert Marvi of Lakers Daily. “That was my moment where me and Kob became – before that we went to the Olympics. We became very close. But we became close on some disrespectful s—. You know Kob, he going into your neck. He elbowing you. I had my braids back then, too, so he touching my head. I’m like, ‘Don’t touch my head. Don’t touch me no more, dawg.’ He’s smirking. He’s throwing his little s— elbows, and ’09 came, and it was like, I remember we hugged before the game, and he was like, ‘It’s war.’ I said, ‘It’s war. Let’s get it. It ain’t gonna be nothing easy.’”

Anthony's endearing Kobe Bryant story did not end there. In true Black Mamba fashion, Kobe was relentless in talking smack toward Melo. For his part, however, Anthony had no intention of backing down:

“And I just remember him telling me, ‘I’ll guard you in the fourth. They ain’t gonna make no calls on me. They ain’t gonna call no s— on me in the fourth,’” Melo continued. “And I used to try to beat him up though. I was bigger than him, so I used to try to beat him up, be physical with him. He come back, elbow me. I come back, elbow him. He laughing, talking, ‘That’s all you got?’”

Kobe Bryant is unlike any other player we've seen in the NBA. His competitive spirit is second to none, but narratives such as these reveal just how great he was as a person — especially coming from a future Hall of Famer such as Carmelo Anthony.

We miss you, Kobe.