“Why the fu*k he texting me at 4 am” Bryon Scott opens up about Legendary Kobe Bryant’s sleepless work ethic
Follow Us
Kobe Bryant ( via Sports Illustrated)
Few could have guessed what happened next when Jerry West traded starting centre Vlade Divac for a 17-year-old Kobe Bryant after the 1996 NBA Draft. Bryant wasn’t a highly regarded talent, and he was entering the NBA right out of high school, which was unusual at the time.
He had a poor start to his career, as one would anticipate from someone so young, but Kobe quickly demonstrated why West made the choice to trade for him. When Byron Scott, a veteran on the squad during Kobe’s rookie year, saw Bryant’s work ethic, he knew he was on to something great. During an episode of his podcast “Off the Dribble,” he recalled his first impressions of a young Kobe Bryant.
Kobe Bryant’s rich history with the Lakers
Also Read: “Pass the motherf**king Ball” Fan trolls greedy Dillon Brooks as he wants him to pass the ball more
Kobe Bryant, sometimes known as “Black Mamba,” is widely recognised as one of the finest shooting guards in NBA history. He was named MVP in 2008 and received two Finals MVP titles in 2009 and 2010. The Los Angeles Lakers won five NBA titles with the help of the 18-time NBA All-Star in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009, and 2010.
Throughout his 20-year career, the Black Mamba averaged 25 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.7 assists in 1,346 regular-season games. He was committed to the Lakers, having spent his whole career with them. On December 20, 2005, Kobe Bryant scored 62 points against the Dallas Mavericks, his first 60-point game and third-highest total. Bryant stunned the eventual NBA champions by scoring more than the whole Mavericks team, including 30 in the third quarter alone.
Bryant did the impossible less than a month after his 62-point performance against the Mavericks. The Toronto Raptors were powerless to stop Kobe and his barrage of points that night, as he scored a career-high 81 points against them. In doing so, he set a new record for the most points ever scored in an NBA game, following only the great Wilt Chamberlain, who iconically scored 100 points in 1962.
Byron Scott recounts his time with Kobe as a player and coach
Byron Scott in his latest episode of the Byron Scott podcast cherishes the time he spent with Kobe Bryant and is reminiscent of their first encounter, he adds “I tell a story a lot about Kobe at 18 years old, I was 36, so my last year with the Lakers,” Scott said. “I would always have to come to practice early to get my treatment and get ready for practice being the elder statesman.
“I came in one time, and we were still playing at the Fabulous Forum, and I heard the ball bouncing. No lights were on. Practice was at about 11, it was probably about 9, 9:30. And I go out to the court and I look, and there’s Kobe Bryant. He’s out there shooting in the dark. And I stood there for probably about ten seconds, and I said, ‘This kid is gonna be great’ … I knew this kid was gonna be special.”
When asked about what set Kobe Bryant different from the others Byron said – “that that last year I coached him right he would text me like four in the morning like coach what we doing for practice tomorrow night and I would wake up at six now I would check my phone and see what the f*&k are you texting me at four in the morning for man? To which Kobe would say – ‘ oh I was up’ and I was like Kobe do you even sleep man and he’s straight like this ‘no not really you know ‘he said’ I’m working on this I’m working on that “
The Lakers legend passed away on the 26th of January after being involved in a helicopter crash taking the lives 8 others who were headed for a girls’ basketball match on which Kobe’s daughter Gianna was supposed to play in, following his death fans from around the world started a petition to replace him in the NBA silhouette.
Do follow us on Google News | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter
Stay Updated!
FS Desk
(8023 Articles Published)