The BEST Kobe Stories From All The Smoke ft. Shaq, Melo, Jeanie Buss And More | SHOWTIME BASKETBALL

What up y'all. As you guys probably know, Stack and I are on summer break right now, taking a little time with the family. But we back to All the Smoke soon. But to on our brother Kobe and his birthday coming up, we put together a special mashup our long video of Kobe stories from our prior guests, from Klay Thompson to Shack to Jeanie Buss, Carmelo Anthony. The list goes on the effect that Kobe had on their lives, on our lives, on your lives. So we hope you

Happy birthday, Kobe Bean Brian. Hey, we miss you, Bro from morning until we join you. Say me and Matt Ben spend a little time with our family, take a break. We'll be right back at youall with most great content. All the Smoke, Showtime Basketball Today. Tribute to my brother Kobe Bean Brian All I guess loved him, had great stories, wanted to give him his flowers. So we're gonna get it to y'all today. Our long video of just giving

I remember Cole's first day on our AAU team. So I played AAU and Patterson with Tim Thomas and kill our squad.

We were playing I remember playing it.

Yeah, we were playing against Elton Brand and those and Coles comes to the squad and the first couple of games he wasn't starting coming in doing these things still, and then big Bean Pops came up like, hey, hey, it's cold.

It's my young fella. He deserves to be out there. He's just as good as whatever.

So I remember Cole's first game playing the point, coming down, gets the half court boom, pull up, she's a hairball.

We're like, bro, what's up?

Step in a little bit, you know, right, come down to the sept poom boom one two at half court next time. All net like his confidence. He's like, bro, I can hit that. That's just nothing. That's my you know. It was just that mentality at that age earlier, on his first second game playing with this team, it wouldn't like, let me fit in Tim Thomas' Tim Thomas's number one in his class.

I'm top five. He like, bro, I'm below.

Hey, rip.

I used to tell people about the McDonald's game. Like when he was there, he had a certain aura and a certain presence about him that we all knew he was gonna be great.

Bro.

Like I tell a story, like everybody has pictures were like group pictures together, but everybody was taking one on one pictures with Kobe game.

Because we all knew.

Everybody knew, bro, don't I got pictures with everybody, but Kvie is the only person I got a one on one.

Picture with in high school.

Bro.

We knew then that this dude was different, Bro, Yo, he was. He was for real, man stank he was. I mean, like we used to because we were roommates too, Like so.

All the au events we were roommates and stuff like that.

And I remember when he was talking about on your show, like he had to kill this, right, And it's funny because you know, we were in roommates and it was many times at night that this dude just didn't want to go to sleep, you just wanted to talk basketball, right.

And I'm like, I'm like.

Tim Thomas, Like, first of all, we don't even play the same position as him, right, But but Tim played on the wing at that time too. Like he was surreal at that time, right because he was a six ' nine, can handle the ball, can play inside outside.

He was like, Man, I'm gonna kill this dude.

Man.

He was like after after tomorrow, it ain't gonna be no doubt in anybody's mind who the number one player in America is, Like they saying I ain't.

The number one player.

Watch watch after the Morrow night, I'm like, bro, go to sleep, man.

We played them early in the morning.

Man, I like, let's talk about this pregame, but like tonight, let's go to bed. So from a mentality standpoint, man, dude, dude was different.

Man.

He was definitely one of a kind.

How did he do in the game?

Was after the game, Bro, Matt, After that game, you can pull up every tabloid or every little Skelt report, and every last one of them had Kobe Bryant as the number one.

Yeah, I remember that.

He came out.

He might have had close to fifth, right, I remember that. Yeah, And we won, and we won.

You guys came in pretty much the same time in similar starts to where it took you a couple of years to get your to really get on the court, It took Cod a couple of years to get on the court. But like you guys said, you guys were both Adidas guys, both young and out of place and really had to lean on each other. Talk to me more about your guys relationship.

So because we were, you know, both Adidas guys and both made the jump from high school to the pros, there was an opportunity for me to go out there and just be around Cod in La. And I went out to La. I stayed with him in the house with him and his parents. Mom used to fire out that, you know, fried chicken for us and macarodi and cheese. I was eating good at that boy house. Man he had he had chores and everything.

But yeah and up pale.

Yeah, he was out there, absolutely, But to be around cold at nineteen years old, bro, you would have thought Cod had been here before and been around you know the greats of the game. Because his mindset was so different Bro than I ever experienced. I ever seen anybody at nineteen years old like this man really and truly thought he was better than Michael Jordan, was gonna be.

Better than Michael Jordan.

Thank you tea man.

You know what I'm saying.

And at the time, I'm looking at my dog, I'm like, Bro, you crazy as hell. Bro for anybody's even think that as a team, And I'm like, Bro, something, I don't want you fair like you crazy. So we used to watch his home his Homegrowl movies, Come Fly with Me, Playground. I used to watch that religiously. Bro, Paul's it and might do something Paul rewind mimic it. I was like dog, he was obsessed with this shit karate flicks.

I mean, man, he was different.

Bro.

Going to school, I was like, Bro and his work, ethic, just everything just bro off on me. And how he handled himself. Man, Partying wasn't his thing. He wasn't to hang out. Now, Oh you want you going to the club, Shit, I'm gonna go to the gym. Put up these shots like That's what he was about. He was just he was different. I learned from him, and you know, he struggled his first year. It was Spad the Lakers. The

And I was over here trying to win scoring titles.

I knew that he had it. I remember him at eighteen years old telling me he's gonna be the Will Smith of the NBA. Like slow down, young fella. But he had a dream. He had a vision, you got, Jiggie.

Yeah, he did.

He had a dream. He had a vision, and look he went for him.

Being forty nine year old. Check looking back on those Laker days, he said, you won three out of four. He said, you probably cause for some of the ego if you had the wisdom you have now back then, how many championships you feel like you guys could have watched seventh.

Because the reason why I got traded it wasn't about me and Kobe Beef is what they wanted me to take less money not doing that.

Cole said at least ten. We asked him, he said at least ten? Yeah, said seven and ten for the Spurs. No, that's true, but I got money. I had money.

I just should have been like, all right, I raise you enough, it's your team now, I know what I'm gonna do. I'm still gonna do my twenty eight ten all right. But I was like, nah, I want, I want, I don't care what you like. If I had all over do again, I probably would have had a meeting with the family.

What's y'all want to do?

Want me take less money, take a less role, stay here, or you were still wanting to be shocked? He's that ego and the egos still got me what I want. I still went to Miami and Pat carried me. I still won one, but I would have liked to have stayed there the rest of my career.

Speaking of Kobe, you got a chance to play with him, at the beginning of his career, at the end of your career. And we had we had talked about this when we had sat down at the crib. Tell tell us some of the stuff that went on, because you caught a young Kobe and you guys are in the same position, right.

So my third year was his first A Jones was starting off, you know.

At the time. Yeah, he was an All Star.

He was an All Star or whatever, fake all Star, but he was an All Star, right, and then Kobe, Kobe, Kobe.

I just I remember Kobe, a young lion.

You were just like, you know how young lions hunt, you know what I mean, And like, man.

I can get out there and get me a kill, you know what I mean, Just put me in a game, coach.

He was over there home.

Oh, he was over there hungry. I just seen it in his eyes. Right, So when he got a gang, right, and I used to kill Addie Jones. I used to really really serve that guy. So Kobe Coby real talk, you know, I mean the silver food one time two in any Wood.

I didn't want to, wouldn't.

It wasn't even no smoke. I can just said, what's up. But that's the whole other stuff.

Right, But so Cobe on the bench way, you know what I mean, Kobe on the bench waiting ready to go.

When he got the game, he was real.

He was real.

I'm just gonna say a while, right.

He was kind of wild.

But I remember calling my brothers at home, like, man, I just played against the raw as young eighteen year old that's probably out there.

I mean, I ain't never played against a young boy that.

Got it like this.

So I'm twenty four to.

Twenty five big boy, you know what I mean, twenty four to twenty five playing big.

You know Jean benjer On all that was he doing.

But I was I was a grown man, so on my mind, no young joy was going you know, I wasn't going for that, you know what I mean, from taking to the painting room, blow the blow up, whatever we're gonna do.

I wasn't going for that.

But I've seen the greatness any young right then what I call home, I'm like, man, this young boys gonna be nice.

Fast forward to h three years light on me.

Watch him go to work and I'm doing my thing, and then they traded and put him in a game. So his I guess four for you because when he really got on right or something like that, I think Eddie was gonna he got in the game and he never looked back, right, He never looked back.

But y'all don't know, is that Kobe Bryant rest in peace to my dog. He took another level of being a defensive standpoint because Gary Payton after practice after practice, all star practice, poured us to the side because Cole dashed him something. They pulled both of us to the side,

Tricks of the trade.

That next time I saw cold after the break he was using. It became first team that year. First time I seen him, said he used that shit. GPHO saw it.

He saw it.

I got his ass, he saw it, Yo, Yeah, I saw it.

This yash nigga, I saw that shit.

I said, I caught that shit.

Didn't think I saw that, but I knew that only the three of us was part of that.

So I was like, you you got to you saw shit.

I thought it was gonna callifight. He ain't caught that shit.

Wow, Because GP taught us when you rip somebody to go through that chest versus using your hand. You see this right, He told us to take a step and come through your chest and come and then round out.

There's no way you can protect the ball.

You can't cross it back once you get in there, once I'm in your cab, you can't cross it up. You would either have to turn your back. Oh man, I saw cold take that first night after the break. I saw it. You know, we want no texting, none of that back then. But when I first saw him, I shot there and stayed it right here. When I saw him, he knew exactly what I was talking about. Shout out to GP for that.

Ye tell us about any personal stories you may have have a Cob or maybe one of your favorite memories of Kobe.

Well, you know, Matt, I had the pleasure of mentoring him for one year when he was in trouble with the different case and stuff.

Uh.

It was really an enjoyful time for me to mentor him. I became a big brother to him. Kobe was just a little different. He didn't have no he didn't have no ego, but I'm not as a meaning he did have egle, but I'm saying an ego and asking ogs what to do and well and how to become better. And when he came to approach me at the All Star Game and asked him how to become how to get make first team All Defense, and I sat there at the.

Center court and taught him.

A lot of things, and he made the first team All Defense with me that year. I said, this young kid has a lot of different a lot of different things in him. He's got a lot of different mentality. And he kept asking me stuff every time he played me, and I posted him up and I got it. He would always come over to me and sneak it in my ear. Oh g man, why you keep killing me on these post ups? Man?

You got to teach me that what should I do?

And that was just a big thing for me to hear that and to respect that. And I couldn't do nothing but respecting and teach him the game because I know I'm a lot older than him, and I was gonna be leaving the game soon, and I want to see somebody in that game that imitates the things that I do.

And can be dominated at it.

And this kid was one of them guys, and I taught him everything that I needed to tell you. We used to stay after practice in LA and he used to see I used to teach him the post up game. Then he used to fade away. He took it all. He'll face you up and go at you. And it was things that he did like that. And we used

And kill him on the other end. And that's what he started doing.

What memories were you take from the two thousand finals experience against the Lakers.

Shock of Monster.

I mean you't have to go to the finals and know that though, I mean, man, but it was different then.

It was different then because in Orlando it was like the younger, more athletic shock and then like later in his career, people got to see like the powerful, like right in front of the rim shock, but like two thousand, like he.

Was playing d on pick and rolls still.

Like blocking shots, like he was blocking shots. He started getting exactly and he was like will to gives us? He was like forty twenty and he's making his free throws. But another great thing, man, is Kobe's coming off party. We hit us with to get down and laid down. That was dope because he was arguing with their bench. Like I used to hear Phil yelling at Kobe, pass the.

Ball, move the ball, get off of it. We're like, yeah, yeah, get off of it.

I don't know what game he watched it right, and Shaq fouled out.

Hey, man, Cole.

I love Cole so much.

He went to work on us.

And then he hit that jumper at the top of the kid and he did this that wasn't even to us, That was to his team because they didn't even believe it. He was looking at looking at oh No. When Cole first got drafted to the probably shouldn't say I'm just trying not to say too much of what I know, but like Cole was presented by his own teammate, his own teammates, Yeah, I couldn't believe it.

They was hating on him.

I'm like, why y'all.

Gonna hate on him because he was that confident? But he ain't.

He ain't even like go out, he ain't dream.

He was over at UCLA with us, we was in college. He was a Laker on on campus, chilling.

I worked out with him that one summer, and you know, Rob ended up being his agent. I was with them and Covid and I, you know, young for that, We're gonna go after the work. I'm gonna go get a massage, you know what I'm saying. Went to the little spot, little burk Spy in Santa Monica or whatever. I went and got it in. I'm in LA, got my little spot in Santa Monica getting it in. He went back to the gym, and I ain't even realized he was doing it.

He was going back.

To the gym, and so like for him to me to watch him from like ninety six when he got drafted and wasn't even appreciated by his own teammates to like being in that moment where Shaq was ended up being like the first forty six minutes of the game and he ended up being the last two. And that's why I started calling him like the remix of MJ. Because to me, he looked like MJ. You sound like MJ. Move like MJ.

You the next best thing.

Shock fouled out, so like everybody kind of paniccked. So they thought, like, Okay, shock foult out. We got to move the ball, we gotta get everybody involved, we gotta play a different style of basketball. And so I think Covid missed like three shots in a row. He like took a couple of bad shots whatever, and he missed three shots in a row. So guys like, man, you got to move the ball. And Field was on him a little bit in the time out, and he came out.

Like I got this. And after that, after that.

Series, then that's when he it was over.

It was over relaxed, I got it.

So you know, the reporter asked Kobe, He's like, you know, your teammates say you don't trust him, you don't, he said, how do you feel about that?

He said, well, I.

Feel like I got a better chance of making a shot out of two people than the guy's wide open.

You know what I'm saying. You know what I'm saying?

Serious?

You know? So you know I love him.

I love him.

Talk to us about your relationship with Cob and what it was like going to war with him over all these years.

I didn't have a personal relationship with him.

But you know how killers respect killers.

You know what I mean? And that's and that's what it was. He knew who I was, I know who he is. He gave me that push. I gave it to him. I love the stories that people give me that were teammates, that were friends.

I love the stories.

I wouldn't say it bothered me, but I wish I could have had a better relationship with him. As far as how great other people said he was, I want that energy around me. He was just Yeah, he was the ultimate. He was the ultimate competitive The man like.

You lucky out of that six sakes six six. That's what he always That's what that man said, you lucky.

When I heard that, it made me feel so good because the respect that.

That he gave me. It was like, you know, just like Max.

You know, I watched First Take, and you know, I listened to Steven Max go at it. A lot of people don't rock with Max, but I love Max because Max, I like Max, always take up for.

Me, don't I don't like the other guy, your homeboy.

Okay, yeah, let's get back on track.

I would go all the way off, all right.

But he said something like, if Kobe and somebody had a baby, you know, it'll be me, you know whatever. And you know, just for people to put me in the same sentence with Cole, just just make me feel good about my grind, my mom, my family, my teammates, y'all, my homeboys.

Just it's a it's a tribute to y'all. You know what I mean.

For a motherfucker to put me in the same category as Kobe Bryant, Like, that's so dope to me.

Is this story true? Our m uh story that I heard that you landed in LA and Kobe picked you up and he lack rain rope. Yeah, he picked you up because he he wanted he just wanted to chop it up with you. And after y'all go out to eat or whatever you decide to go out. He tell your ass, I'm dropping you off to the hotel.

This is my stop. I'm gonna work out. I'm going to the gym. Is that true story?

We he took me out to eat and I said, what you getting ready to do? I'm going to the club. And he said, I'm going to the gym. And that was him, That was that was th th That's that's that's what made I mean that greatness. That's that where that greatness came from because his work atic six.

Second and h was just But I guarantee you it's probably a handful of people on the other team that he was playing and he did that that he can't because you know, Kobe, he ain't talking to nobody through the game, damn sure, not about another team. So I'm just saying that sort of respect he had you, He ain't gonna pick up.

Nobody to break that down.

Hell nah, hell no, studying you the whole time, Yeah, studying what he was what she was saying, no bullshit, That's how he was. He was a he was a sick o when it came to that kind of ship, like trying to find any kind of advantage or angle he could possibly get. I'm sure you've seen it right away. You got a chance play with him. I came and play with you guys. What it was like just being with him and seeing him.

Now, yeah, I mean what it was. His whole ship is different. I'll be hearing dude say his name like he ain't really he was trying to be perfect on the court all the time, even doing his like his little shooting routine or whatever. You know what I'm saying. Even if his footwork, even if he's getting shot, he's doing it in a certain way where he's just trying to be trying to get better at it. You know, his work effict in the morning, man, he was like

You know, I mean that that changed.

I think just probably the way I looked at the game, you know, really not from the from the physical aspect from the mental aspect, the mental approach. I mean, you know, we used to meditate together, and so if you know anything about meditation, that just like prayer in a sense. So really we like we all praying together unreligiously. That's deep, you know what I mean. So that's gonna build the

That's crazy to have read enough books to be able to have something for you.

Understand people that much though, right question how driven was cold?

And how did that? How did that rub off on you?

I learned from this dude just by even just room, just watching them.

Man. You know, he said he was better than Mike. I know he did. He thought it. He thought it. You could tell though he felt that way.

I said, what, I'm walking through the airport and they like Shaquille O'Neil come in to the Miami Heat. I was like, damn, we about to be like dope leaving the Miami Heat and my name they had a lebar Dave.

I was like, oh shit, like that's how this worked. Like I thought I was here forever. I just bought a crib like I can't sell a crib. I just bought it, like it was just like all that emotional attachment, but that was just that was just a crazy experienced one just to be a part of that whole process. And then going to Los Angeles and I'll never forget Kobe signed a deal for one hundred and thirty plus

Out, Like let's take that shit to another level. And I'm talking about the blackout sessions. Was crazy. The reason why I was an All Star player, the reason why I'm in the coaching space is because my time that I spent with Kobe Bryant.

What was he like off the court? Basketball genius? All he talked about was the game.

I started watching film with him on every plane trip, just analyzing like the rotations, the schemes, the double teams, where they was coming from, how to manipulate the defense. I learned the whole bunch from a Bean and also too, you know when you talk about life after basketball, he gave me like a jewel that stuck with me.

The roar of the crowd is not for you.

It's for what you can do, and as soon as you can do it, they be cheering for someone else. So like, work on your second act. While you're in the midst of your first.

In Western Conference finals against Cold, you guys are right there on the doorstep, think about that mess up.

The greatest man I just that was. That was my moment where me and Cole became Before that, we went to the Olympics. Before that, we became very close, but we became close on some like some disrespectful ship like Cold.

You know, you know Cold man, you're.

Going at your neck saying, she to your elbowing you. I had my braids back then too, so he.

Touched my head.

I'm like, ya, don't.

Don't touch my head, like you know what I'm saying, I don't touch me no more.

Dog.

And you know he's smirking, and you know he's doing his little ship elbows and O nine came and it was like, I mean, we hugged before the game.

He was like, war, it's war. I said, it's war.

Like, let's let's get it, like you ain't gonna be nothing easy. And I just remember him. He always would tell me, I guard you in the fourth because gonna make no they ain't gonna call him hill me in the fourth, and.

I just usually try to.

I used to try to beat him up though you know I was bigger than him, so I used to try to beat him up, be physical with him. He come back elbow and me, I come back elbow on him. He laughing talking about that's all you got, you know what I'm saying. It was just pushing my button to see.

Well, I was gonna standing that, you know what I'm saying.

And that's how like we grew man and we all we became who we.

Are twenty ten.

Man, I remember that shit more than the year that we wanted, because it was like I started five healthy. We never lost the we never lost a playoff series, and I felt like going into La, we was up, We was up three three two, Game six in LA, felt like we had the right momentum going. Obviously they get Andrew Bonum back, So now I'm playing Andrew Bonum ticket planing Mark, I mean.

Paul Kasol, Yeah, Powell Kassau.

So the motherfucker matchups is even we down there were battling like a motherfucker we going at it. So now I tell my motherfucking acl man, And it was the worst thing of my life because I didn't think it wasn't that I didn't feel like I wasn't gonna bounce back. But you just never take going to the finals for granted because people people don't understand it's hard to just get to the finals, let alone win the championship.

And I'm like, man, I.

Might not reach this shit again ever in my life.

That's why it hurted me.

And then having to sit out Game seven and watch us have a fourteen point lead in the fourth quarter and the Lakers walk the shit down to win the championship and watch them celebrate on our home on their home court, and us having to walk through the stadium hear and all that shit, the bus ride going to the plane and shit decorated with La gilt. But I'm gonna tell you something. Kobe was six for twenty four of that game. But this is how bad he wanted. Every team that won that won the game in that

But like he was off, but he said, you know.

What, he would do whatever he will do whatever it takes to win.

He had he had.

Eight offensive rebounds that led to him going to the free throw line like that. That's like, motherfucker wanted that shit, man. And like today man says, we're thinking back on it and when we lost our brother. I ain't even just saying this because you know it's a front. This is how I feel when people ask me about that twenty ten.

Now I'm at ease with it.

I'm like, you know what shit I see I Kobe could have that motherfucker.

Man, I'm glad he took.

When you reflect on Kobe and his memory with what stands out.

Man, his realness, his realness. Man, he was misunderstood. Man. People.

I asked him one time, Matt, like I asked him. I said, man, why he's such an asshole. I asked him that. He said, you really want to know you know how he was and he said to me, he said, Phil, Man, some of my teammates don't understand the work. He said, so, I see dudes walk into practice ten minutes before practice and they leave right after. Why the fuck am I going to pass them to basketball? I don't respect the

I laughed when you said the five forty five thing because I automatically knew five forty five in the morning because I used to have to go out to Orange County and what time you want me to meet you at the track? Five fifteen. I'm like, nigga's still dark and you're talking about moment I got run. We got to run, then we gotta hit the gym. We hit the gym and lift so hard I felt like I couldn't lift my arms up, and then we got to go shoot for like two hours at like the work.

You've experienced it, Matt, I ran through you. You experienced people don't. People don't really understand like what that was about with him.

Yeah, he respected you. He fucked with you if they like I said, he had had me come out there, we go work out and we go have breakfast and everything. And like I said, I know he didn't let too many people do that.

You know what I mean.

To be able to get that side of him was dope. And it's funny because I asked him the same questions, like why don't you ever show I didn't say be an asshole, like wyonn't you show the world how dope you are and how you are with us? He looked at me and he said, I can't let the motherfucker see that. I say that for Kobe.

I say, Kobe was one of still one of the hardest guys I've ever had to car late.

In his career, no question, because question remember.

When I played him, he shot the ball about forty damn times. But it was amazing just to see like his craft at the same time, like he still had he still had the footwork.

It's plum work.

Look look how many points she scored his last game. I mean, that's that's that's the hell lot right there.

He had a ratchet.

I tell you alone, m That's that's why I tell people they ask me who the hardest for me to guard was him, because like you said, it was the foot work, it was the skill work he had. And then you knowing that when he takes that one or two dribbles to the baseline, right, he's gonna shot fake you, But you still fucking jump because he'll shot fake you seven times because he's not gonna pass, you know what I mean, Like, if he gets in that move, he'll shot fake you until you jump and fallom. And it

Have you y'all heard him? Y'all heard him? Heard him hiss before?

Huh?

Yes, when he needs the Yeah, that's that's when you have to the ball. So crazy. Yeah.

So it's my first game playing against him.

He's on the wing.

I think I want to say Sasha had the ball all of a sudden, All of a sudden, he says.

That's it, that's him, that's cold, And all of a sudden the ball was in his hand.

I said, oh my god, that's all you gotta do to get the ball.

Yo, It don't matter how loud the arena is.

Mama, noise, noise.

I'm trying to tell you, it don't matter how loud the arena is. You gonna hear that motherfucking hissing. The ball better be in his hands than like the next three to five seconds. And if you haven't, hey, if you have the nerve to if you have the nerve to shoot, and miss with after he hisses, go back

As far as cod go man, he was super cool. I enjoyed competing with him and just just being around him. You know what I'm saying. It's just a different energy when you're around him and you want to flow with him.

Yeah, I said, I mean I got a chance to, like you, play with Ai, play with Chris Paul. Super competitive dudes, but to me, there's no one more competit.

Yeah see, I didn't. I wish you get that. We didn't get We didn't. We didn't get that part of the experience. Like every once in a while, yeah did he would say some ship did. The whole room was like like, we had a fun He's gonna be mad at you for this, but look we had a blowout.

We got blue out uh.

At Portland and he came in the locker room and he was like, from now on out. Every time down the court, I touched the ball. Y'all gonna learn what it's like to play with Kobe Bean fucking Bright, and I'm looking like this mother serious. But so Nick Young played for lass. We go, we showered ship, we come back. Nick walk in the locker room to y'all better throw that mother fuck the ball and it's.

Gonna be some ship around here.

So like, Nick never took anything serious though, but we just got the ship kicked out of us, and Code wasn't going for it, you know what I'm saying. And so I just think mentally, like he meant that ship, you know what I'm saying. I just think it at point's body just didn't give him what he wanted.

When I got to play with Kobe for you know, a few you know, we didn't get to we both got hurt. But having to share in the locker room with him at the end of our career, it was an eye opener in a sense because you forget, we got drafted together. We played against each other our whole careers. You know, you I thought of him as a competitor. I thought as the competition, you know, predominantly, So when I came to the Lakers, and you could see the

Best Kobe memory on or off the court.

Yeah, so I got a I got a good Kobe story. So my rookie year, we're playing here in Staples Center, and Michale tells us before like look, you're like, he pulls me aside, like you're gonna see crazy people. You're gonna see celebrities there like lock In and Kobe. He's gonna try and bust your ass, like he's going to be like offended. You're guarding him.

Absolutely, I'm like cool, Like I love it.

I'm flattering to guard him. So I go there first.

So I'm just looking at the court side. My head's on a swivel. Just I've never seen this before, right, I'm like, God, damn, this is great.

All of them is there and this.

Chicks there, I'm like wow.

So I'm already distracted, and of course I'm starting on Kobe and Jordan Hill that year had got traded from Houston to La so I had known him as a little side note. And fourth quarter comes around and Kobe looks at me and he's like, are you guys staying the night tonight? And I'm like, I'm like looking at mcale, make sure he's not looking at me for and I'm like, yeah, like what up, Like I'm like, oh, he's doing it like he's mister Mia Gamy right now, it's like he's

I got you.

Like he's my guy.

He set it up.

Let's go, JB. Your staff is there, like I'm bringing coaches, I'm bringing trainers. This is I got it, and we have a blast. Right, we have the craziest night ever. Supper club was the Tit was the club where the tables were beds.

Yeah, it was awesome.

I was like it was nuts and two am rolls around and granted, I'm with these guys that made hundreds of millions dollars and this waitress Bee lines right to me with the check and I'm like, oh shit. And my dad's my financial advisor at the time. He would be on my ass if I like value size, combo meal Chick fil A, and he's bringing me. She's bringing me this bill for god knows how much, and I'm like, oh man, I open it and it's like twenty two thousand dollars.

And now at this point, I'm like I'm sick.

I'm physically like no, no, like I can't do this because car's gonna bounce and I'll never forget this chick looks at me, hands me a pen and says, sign for mister Bryant.

And I'm like what, I'm like, video the whole thing. I'm like, I'm like, signing Kobe brought. I sign Kobe Bryant on a twenty two thousand dollars club bill and everyone, by the way, they say he's tough, he's gonna go at you. I'm like, this dude was cool as fuck. He was he was awesome. It was a crazy, crazy time.

See I got a picture of it.

I still got his number.

I'm like, I love the way the story went though, because I thought because Kobe wasn't asked too, he would have been nucky with the bill and from the weekend before, I was like, oh, he flipped on you. That's our guy.

I love that.

That's a dope, best story.

Nothing but love for him.

That's probably my favorite Kobe story.

Yeah, that's a good one. Yeah.

Look with Kobe, like like with Lebron, Like when I got it Lebron back then, my attitude was I'm not gonna crash the offensive class and we shoot, I'm gonna find him. I'm not gonna let him get out in the full head of steam. So I'm not gonna let him turn the corner and go right and get to the rim. I'm gonna make him make contested jump shots. And I'm not gonna foul if he posts me up. Don't help because he beat you with his passing as much.

How hard it is saying this, and when you usually square it off against him, you're saying that in your head as yours.

I knew he wanted to go right, and I knew he had a great ball fake, and I've seen him do it before. And so he at one shot right in front of our bench. We tapped Alvin on them, and so he hit a touch shot on me before that, and I tried to deny him the ball, but he gets it, he goes right.

I go with him.

He shot faced.

I don't go for it.

I actually I get closer into him. I go up when he goes up. You know how hard it is to do a shot fake reload from three and somebody in your grind. And I couldn't be any closer to him without fouling man, this dude, Like I was like, I mean, I was actually proud of the defense I played, Like I'm thinking I could have done anything other than just prevent him fro getting the ball. But he was

Kobe throughout his career, which just he would have he would either shoot me a text. And it's funny because having Kobe number in your phone and not abusing it was like you had to ask some real restraints because I had so many like niggas Kobe, like wanted to talk to Kobe every day, you know what I'm saying, even if even if, like you know, you had obviously different mothers and fathers, like you still felt like he was a brother, you know what I'm saying, because anytime

His short it was, yeah, it was.

It would start running, man, And so like I still feel indebted to Kobe just for his contribution to the city, for him never wavering from you know, like playing for the Lakers, never being traded, never abandoned the ship, like just taking it in the last game.

Oh my god, I said that. Yo.

I watched it. I watched the niggas double team. It wasn't easy. I watched him get sixty on the way out. And it's like that, like when we talk about Kobe, I mean, under these glasses, if I say to say his name too much, I'm gonna start crying. All though, because it's like you would never I would. You would have never thought in a million years that Kobe would meet an untimely Demid.

It's a superhero.

Yeah. So the end of twenty nineteen, you unfortunately lost your mother. The beginning of twenty twenty, you lost some another mentor to you, David Stern, and then we all lost Kobe the end of that January talk to us just about where you were as a person outside of business. But obviously business had to continue. But as a person, that's a lot for anyone to handle. Yeah, it's.

And I'm glad the way you said that we all lost Kobe, because when people would say to me and express their condolences, I would correct them and say, hey, the world lost somebody really special. And just him as a friend and as a motivator and watching him as a father and a husband. You know, he just he was a leader and you know he's irreplaceable. And the knowledge that he shared with people, I had no idea

Yeah, we had an opportunity one of his last, if not his last interviews. We went out there and interviewed him, and before we even got to the interview, he brought me and Jack into his office and he was just so adamant on putting the first twenty years of his greatness to bed and being that next but what's my next act? The businessman, the father, the you know everything else he was involved in. But it was amazing to