With all the greatness he has shown throughout his career, including the honors he received, Los Angeles Laker s legend Kobe Bryant has become widely regarded as one of the best players to ever play the game of basketball.
He dominated the competition during his prime, and won almost all awards the NBA has to offer. Many have given their praises for Bryant, and just recently, Caron Butler can be added to that list, as he also made it known that he thinks highly of Bryant.
The former two-time All-Star appeared on the recent episode of “The Herd” with Colin Cowherd, where he talked about his experience of being The Black Mamba's teammate. Butler also shared that he learned how to work hard from the Miami Heat franchise, but saw first hand how it should be done from Bryant.
Butler then said that for him, the five-time champion is the greatest player of his generation.
“I come here and Kobe signs this amazing deal, hundreds of millions and he says ‘Hey, it’s time to work.’ I’m talking about early morning workouts, after-practice one-on-one sessions, film sessions. I was prepared because I went to the Miami Heat. I was taught how to be a professional under Pat Riley, Stan Van Gundy, Erik Spoelstra. And then I come here and now you’re not just being taught it, you’re being shown it.”
“Greatest player of our generation hands down: Kobe Bryant.”
Butler then confirmed that the chatter about Bryant trash talking during practices is true, but that has made him the special player that he is, and also made his teammates become better.
“Absolutely. All the time. He talks all the time. ‘You can’t stop me, you can’t hold me.’ And that’s what you love. You’re either going to be turned up from it or turned down by it. It elevates you to a whole other level.”
The former 10th overall pick of the 2002 draft was traded to the Lakers in the 2004-05 season, after spending his first two years in the NBA in South Beach. Butler was part of the blockbuster deal that centered around Shaquille O'Neal, which gave him the opportunity to be Bryant's teammate.
Despite only spending one season with the Purple and Gold, that was enough for Butler to have a deeper understanding of Bryant's greatness.
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