Not only is Stephen Curry the greatest shooter of all time. The Golden State Warriors also happens to be one of the most competitive players out there on the court. Don't let the smile and the baby-faced looks fool you; Steph is a ruthless competitor. Even Los Angeles Lakers icon Kobe Bryant knew all too well that this was the hard truth.

Curry recently looked back at one of his fondest memories of the fallen Lakers legend. According to the Warriors talisman, one of the most unforgettable comments he got from Kobe was when the five-time NBA champ talked up Curry's own unbridled competitive nature:

“One of the best compliments I ever got, when he recognized the killer instinct behind the smile,” Curry said. “You know Mamba Mentality has a name, has a theme because you could see it on his face. Like, ‘I'm out here to kill every single person in front of me to get to where I wanna go.' But he acknowledged that same spirit but knew that I did it with a smile on my face and the joy that came with it. Like, ‘Don't get fooled. He's coming for your heart.' kinda vibe.”

As we all know, Stephen Curry plays with a very cheerful demeanor and he always has that big smile on his face. However, you would be a fool to mistake this for weakness on his end. As Kobe Bryant once pointed out, Curry is one of the most ruthless competitors out there.

For his part, it is clear that this complement has stuck with Steph for many years:

“I appreciate that compliment because it's coming from somebody who knew what that energy was like,” Curry said.