Kobe Bryant Articles - Page 45

Former NBA center Pau Gasol reminisced about his time with Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers, including what sparked him to become the superstar’s sidekick during those championship-winning teams in 2009 and 2010. “They gave me two [nicknames],” the former Lakers talent told Spanish publication La Resistencia (via Marca). “[The first one was] the […]

The Sacramento Kings got their share of flak for taking Peja Stojakovic during the 1996 NBA Draft instead of John Wallace, but they were prepared to go a completely different way if then-high schooler Kobe Bryant slipped down the board. As fate would have it, Bryant would only slip to 13th to the Charlotte Hornets […]

Michael Jordan is the deadliest midrange shooter in NBA history. His prowess would influence and inspire the next generation of All Star shooting guards, including Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, and Richard Hamilton. Hamilton wasn’t just impacted by Jordan from afar, though. The three-time All Star got to pick Jordan’s brain up-close as his Washington Wizards […]

As part of a recent interview with Sports Illustrated, Atlanta Hawks forward Vince Carter recanted a conversation he shared with Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant prior to his passing in January. Carter burst onto the NBA scene in 1998. The Florida native was the 5th overall pick by the Golden State Warriors, but he […]

Sacramento Kings head coach Luke Walton has been intently watching ESPN’s docuseries “The Last Dance,” which has sparked plenty of uncanny similarities between Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. Walton, who played with Bryant as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers, noted how passages of each episode of the series reflect how similar the two […]

Phil Jackson has the most championships (11) and highest winning-percentage (.704) of any coach in NBA history (min. 500 games) and the most playoff victories (229) over 20 seasons as an NBA head coach. He inherited teams laden with young superstars, but extracting the utmost production from stars is a) hard and b) a good […]

Michael Jordan in his prime was simply something else. Not many, if anyone, could probably match up with him in a game of 1-on-1. According to Jordan himself, however, he thinks that Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant might have just been able to edge him out — for one very particular reason. “If I […]

With all of us in the mood for documentaries revisiting past basketball teams, former NBA star Dwyane Wade revealed he’s producing a documentary about the 2008 Team USA Men’s Basketball team, known as the “Redeem Team.” “We’re doing a documentary on the 2008 Redeem Team… It’s something that we’ve been working on for the last […]

We’ve all probably come across one or two stories about how Los Angeles Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal has been going through such a difficult time in the wake of the untimely passing of his good friend, Kobe Bryant. The famed big man has been very vocal about how challenging it has been for him emotionally […]

Even the biggest of NBA superstars have their own endearing narrative about the late Kobe Bryant. This time around, it was Heat legend Dwyane Wade who shared his Kobe story. Wade took a trip down memory lane as he narrated how Bryant — already a bonafide superstar in the league at that time — welcomed […]

Los Angeles Lakers owner Jeanie Buss had the pleasure of having a close relationship with two legendary figures in franchise history: coach Phil Jackson and the late icon Kobe Bryant. In an Instagram post on Friday (April 24), Buss revealed a touching story of how Jackson and Bryant’s coach-player relationship continued to blossom even after […]

Apart from being the second most winningest team in NBA history, the Los Angeles Lakers are known as perhaps the most dignified franchise in all of sports. Playing under the bright lights of Hollywood, after all, puts every Purple and Gold player under a constant microscope. Thus, everyone tries to carry themselves in a distinguished […]

A number of items tied to former Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant are being auctioned off in one of the largest collections of Kobe memorabilia ever, per Goldin Auctions. The proceeds from the auction will benefit the Mamba and Mambacita Sports Foundation, which was started by Bryant’s wife, Vanessa, after Kobe and his daughter, […]

Despite their highly-publicized feud during their time as teammates with the Los Angeles Lakers, it is also a known fact that Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant were eventually able to patch up their differences years later. These two actually developed a very close friendship, and this is exactly why Shaq was so deeply hurt by […]

The Los Angeles Lakers are the most glamorous franchise in the NBA. As such, L.A. has become a prime destination for free agents over the years. Karl Malone, Shaquille O’Neal, and LeBron James are just some of the biggest names to come to the Lakers via free agency, and it is indeed understandable why players […]

The 2019 offseason has gone down in history as one of the most landscape-shifting summers in NBA history. Not only did it have arguably the most talent-packed free agency class ever, but this offseason also saw witness to some of the biggest blockbuster trades in recent history. Anthony Davis to the Los Angeles Lakers, Paul […]

The rousing success of the premiere of The Last Dance, a 10-part docuseries highlighting Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls’ 1997-98 season, could pave the way for Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant having a version of his own. According to “Muse” director Gotham Chopra, the Lakers great was followed closely during his last two seasons […]

A new development has emerged with regards to the tragic helicopter crash that took the lives of Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna, and seven other individuals. In a recent article posted on NewsWest9, it is being reported that the families of the crash victims have decided to file a lawsuit against […]

On the latest episode of All The Smoke with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, NBA Hall of Famer Gary Payton talked about Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant. Bryant and Payton were teammates on the Lakers, but their relationship began before that during an All-Star Game: “Kobe was just a little different,” Gary Payton said […]

Former NBA swingman Stephen Jackson has made quite a career of becoming a basketball analyst in retirement. Once again adding his two cents to the mix, Jackson is now attempting to settle the ongoing and seemingly never-ending debate surrounding the best player in history. Is it Michael Jordan? Perhaps the late, great Kobe Bryant? Or […]

The G League is looking to make Kobe Bryant’s Mamba Sports Academy the home base of their newly-formed “Select Team,” according to a report from Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. The Lakers legend passed away in a tragic helicopter crash earlier this year, but the facility that bares his mentality would feature high school players […]

Magic Johnson believes that the Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal-led Los Angeles Lakers of the early 2000s would beat the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls of the 90s in a seven-game series. After O’Neal came out this week with the declaration, Johnson concurred. On the ‘Lunchtime with Roggin and Rodney podcast by LA AM570 radio, the […]

The misunderstandings between former Los Angeles Lakers superstars Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant are well-documented. When Shaq departed from L.A. in 2004, the general belief was that it was brought about by his real-life feud with Kobe. Be that as it may, O’Neal and Bryant has since made up and have become extremely close friends. […]

After getting drafted by New York Liberty in the recently concluded 2020 WNBA Draft, former Oregon Ducks star guard Sabrina Ionescu sent a touching tribute to the late Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant. Right after Liberty picked her with the No.1 overall pick, Ionescu took it to her Instagram Stories to pay tribute to […]

Today is Kobe Bryant and Vanessa Bryant’s 19th wedding anniversary, so Vanessa posted a moving tribute on Instagram which included a picture of her and the Lakers legend. Vanessa’s caption was the following statement: My king, my heart, my best friend. Happy 19th wedding anniversary baby. I miss you so much. I wish you were […]

Michael Jordan vs LeBron James. Or it is maybe Kobe Bryant vs either of those two (or both). As different generations of basketball fans consume the sport, the GOAT debate rages, usually involving all three men. There’s even more context to the story. When you’re 35-years-old in the world of sports, you’re considered old, tired, […]

Despite often matching up against one another during their playing days, the late NBA icon Kobe Bryant and retired superstar Dwyane Wade shared a wonderful friendship off the court. The two legendary shooting guards were pure business whenever their respective NBA teams took on each other. But once the horn sounded, Bryant and Wade shared […]

Former Chicago Bulls head coach Phil Jackson will get his clipboard and pen once again on Sunday, as he breaks down film of Game 3 of the 1998 NBA Finals as part of the Kobe Bryant-led ESPN+ series Detail. The first episode will feature Jackson going over the Bulls’ 96-54 pounding of the Utah Jazz to […]

JR Smith and the Denver Nuggets faced Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2009 Western Conference Finals. During a recent interview with Bleacher Report, Smith was asked what his favorite Bryant memory was. JR talked about a moment he and his nephew had with the Lakers legend after one of the games […]

The filmmakers of the much-anticipated docuseries “The Last Dance” finished a scene with Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant in mid-January, roughly a week before Bryant’s tragic death in the hills of Calabasas. Director Jason Hehir pointed to one particular scene in which Bryant declared Michael Jordan, the star he’d grown so keen on emulating […]

Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant had fully embraced his place as a mentor for NBA stars after his retirement. Following a successful mini-camp for players before the 2019-20 season, he chose to do the same for WNBA players from Jan. 13-15 at the Mamba Sports Academy. The ways Bryant saw it, if NBA players […]

Grammy Award-winning rapper and producer Kanye West has recently opened up about how the loss of Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant has affected him on a personal level. According to West, he sees so much of himself in the Lakers icon, and that one of the most important things Kobe has left him with […]

University of Oregon star Sabrina Ionescu grieved the loss of longtime friend and mentor Kobe Bryant long after his passing. The projected No. 1 WNBA Draft pick remembers texting the Los Angeles Lakers icon even after his death, looking for that connection. “The rest is for you,” she texted him once, according to Mirin Fader […]

Los Angeles Lakers legend and NBA talisman Kobe Bryant tragically passed away in a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020. The NBA world continues to mourn his untimely death, as does the NBA 2K video game franchise. NBA 2K announced on Monday (April 13) that its most recent game, NBA 2K20, would offer multiple challenges […]

Vanessa Bryant, the widow of late Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, posted an emotional message along with an Instagram video celebrating the anniversary of her husband’s final NBA game. Bryant scored 60 points in what may easily be the best career-closing performance of all time in a Lakers come-from-behind win over the Utah Jazz. […]

Earning a signature shoe deal is a right of passage for any NBA superstar. From a young age, players around the globe dream of signing that big contract, then lacing up in their own kicks. This holds true for some of the greatest of all time, including LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Kobe Bryant and Michael […]

24-year-old Canberra, Australia native Nick Kyrgios is one of the biggest names in the world of tennis today. As it turns out, he is a huge fan of basketball — in particular, LeBron James and Kobe Byrant. So much so, that Kyrgios had a sleeve tattoo made in honor of the two Los Angeles Lakers […]

Nike had previously been prohibiting new shoe releases in the wake of Kobe Bryant’s death. However, it appears the marquee brand just rolled out a new Kobe Bryant signature shoe called the “Mamba Fury” (via Pat Benson of Forbes): In a time when everyone needs some good news, Laker Nation just received something to cheer […]

Seven years ago today, one of the most gutsy moments of the great Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant’s career happened. On April 12th, while carrying the Lakers for much of the fourth quarter against the Golden State Warriors, Kobe suffered a career-altering injury and tore his Achilles while driving to the basket. It all […]