LeBron James played a great game during the Lakers’ 106-91 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, though his performance had him overtake Kobe Bryant on the all-time scoring list. His achievement was one of the few bright spots in the Lakers’ otherwise forgettable night.

James shared that it’s flattering for him to have overtaken one of the best scorers to ever lace them up in the all-time scoring list. He then went on to talk about how Bryant inspired him to become a better player, even going back to his pre-NBA years to point out his connection with the Black Mamba.

Spectrum Sports shared a video of James gushing about the Lakers legend, even sharing the time he wore one of Bryant’s shoes to a game.

It was a nice moment for James to look back on. After all, he said himself that Kobe inspired him to be great. During the post-game interview, he also shared how the Lakers legend set him on the path to greatness.

Per Sports Illustrated’s Melissa Rohlin:

“I went to ABCD camp and he came and talked to all of the kids who [were] there, and I happened to be one of the kids who [were] there. I remember one thing that he said, he was like, if you want to try and be great at it, or if you want to be one of the greats, you’ve got to put the work in. There’s no substitution to work.”

Thanks to the words and actions Bryant did, the league has now seen one of the best basketball players in history make his mark in the league. The Lakers star has been playing so well that people wouldn’t even be surprised if he ends his career at the top of the prestigious list.