With a few simple words, Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant lifted the spirits of Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard during the 2014 All-Star game.
The 2014 All-Star game was Lillard's first All-Star selection. He was really looking forward to playing in the game, but he wasn't getting too many minutes since there were so many stars on the roster.
Lillard was a little dejected on the bench and that's when the Lakers icon came up to the rising Blazers star and gave him some words of encouragement, via Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports:
Damian Lillard wasn’t getting a chance to play, logging just eight minutes, the second fewest behind Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki, who was the oldest player in the game at 35.
Kobe Bryant was voted in as a starter, but was unable to play because he was recovering from an Achilles’ tendon tear. He noticed how dejected Lillard was sitting near the end of the bench. With no prior relationship established, Bryant decided to sit by the young guard and deliver a stern message.
“You f—ing belong here [as an All-Star],” Lillard said Bryant told him. “You’re right where you’re supposed to be with everyone here. You’re an All-Star. Just keep working young fella.”
Throughout the course of the game, Bryant kept reminding Lillard of that.
“For me, I’ve never sought out validation and I’ve never needed it … but when it came from him, it was just different. It hit different to me,” Damian Lillard told Yahoo Sports. “I appreciated that more because of just the history of growing up a fan, idolizing him and then becoming a peer. When you hear it from him, you know it’s certified. So, that just meant a lot to me.”
Bryant may be the fiercest competitor in NBA history, but this story shows the soft side of the Lakers legend.
Coming straight to the NBA from high school is no easy move, but Bryant finished his Lakers career with averages of 25.0 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game. The 6-foot-6 shooting guard was an 18-time All-Star, two-time scoring champion, 15-time All-NBA team member, two-time Finals MVP and five-time champion.
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