Former NBA All-Star Gilbert Arenas pushed back against Jeff Teague’s criticism of Kobe Bryant’s All-Defensive honors, defending the late Los Angeles Lakers legend’s reputation as one of the league’s top perimeter defenders.
Arenas addressed Teague’s comments on a recent episode of No Chill Gil.
“So Jeff Teague, yeah, you might (have) got the best of Kobe Bryant that night or…every night you played him. But he's coming (at) you to slow you down,” Arenas said. “In Teague's mind, he wasn't like that on the defensive end. But when you're talking about he's getting awards off of 82 games, we don't know what he's doing in 82 games, right? He's playing against other players, shutting them down, doing what he's doing. We only have an experience from two times a year, right?”
Arenas went on further, pointing out Bryant’s versatility and ability to neutralize multiple offensive threats.
“So from what I’ve seen him do to the two guards on our team, yeah, he was like that. Yeah. He was shutting players down. Teague, if he’s on you, that means Joe Johnson is neutralized. For him to get on you, he's neutralized. He did the job. Now he's on you.
“Same thing with me. Larry Hughes is here, but if he sees me getting off, he’s going to step on me. Then if Larry's getting off, he going to go to Larry, so if Antawn Jamison’s getting off, I got Antawn in the post, right? So he had multiple jobs, so as a defender himself, he was a great defender.”
Jeff Teague’s remarks prompt Gilbert Arenas to defend Kobe Bryant
Teague sparked the debate in early July when he suggested on the Club 520 podcast that Bryant’s defensive accolades were awarded more for his reputation than his on-court performance.
“Maybe the first four or five he was, but after that, he wasn't guarding like that,” Teague said. “It's a persona. The first couple of times he made it, he locked up, he guard. He probably did that for two or three seasons, and then it just became a thing; Kobe Bryant played defense.”
Bryant earned 12 NBA All-Defensive Team selections during his 20-year career with the Lakers, including nine First Team nods. He built a legacy not only as one of the game’s most prolific scorers but also as a relentless defender, often taking on the responsibility of guarding the opposing team’s best perimeter player.
The five-time champion remains one of the most decorated players in NBA history with an MVP award, two Finals MVPs, 18 All-Star selections, and two Olympic gold medals. He retired in 2016 as the Lakers’ all-time leading scorer and the fourth-highest scorer in league history.
The exchange between Teague and Arenas has reignited discussion about Bryant’s two-way dominance, underscoring the lasting impact of his career nearly five years after his passing in January 2020.
