Smush Parker and Kobe Bryant were the starting backcourt for the Los Angeles Lakers from 2005 to 2007, but the pair had a very poor relationship off the court. Bryant called Parker his worst teammate ever after their partnership had ended. Parker opened up on how he felt when he heard Kobe say that.
“At this point, I know it was a response to what I said. At this point, whatever he’s saying, I think I hurt his feelings. I said what I said to get some steam off my chest. He’s saying what he’s saying and getting some steam off his chest. Those words that he said then really hurt me and I just knew it was the consequences of my actions.”
Parker has cast his share of stones at Kobe, calling his experience of playing alongside Bryant overrated while also openly saying that no organization in the NBA caters to one player as much as the Lakers do with Kobe. But Parker does express accountability for his words causing Kobe to be harsher in his responses.
After this quote, the interviewer VladTV revealed that Kobe had blocked him on Twitter before his untimely death for analyzing an Instagram post in a way Kobe didn’t intend.
“My one and only exchange with Kobe was before he passed, we had done an article about how he was coaching his daughter’s team. He had posted an Instagram post about how they lost and they weren’t playing well, they were all depressed looking. We did a post about that and he responded back to me, like, ‘That’s not what I meant’, and then he blocked me.”
Parker admitted that Kobe’s desire to win was arguably his greatest asset while expressing that it was this desire that likely made their relationship a very hard one.
They threw countless barbs at each other when the beef was at its hottest, with Kobe saying the Lakers had Parker because they were too cheap to get a point guard and Parker making negative comments about Bryant’s personality.
Smush Parker Opened Up On Being Disrespected By Kobe Bryant
In this same interview with VladTV, Parker also discussed his infamous interaction with Bryant where Parker tries to make small talk with his backcourt partner, prompting Bryant to tell him to get more accolades before talking to him. Smush kept it real while discussing the disrespectful moment.
“Everybody knows the story. It’s mid-season, I’m the starting point guard at that time… I ain’t talk to Kobe outside playing basketball, so let me say what’s up. We sit next to each other at practice, we sit next to each other before every game. The story has it, I tried going for some small talk and he shut it down… I felt small, I felt disrespected. There’s some from New York City, so there’s a level of respect you show another man. When that line is crossed, things happen. I don’t need to get into details. I didn’t have a response (for Kobe), I knew my place. I just let it go.”
Parker did his job as a rotational point guard for the Lakers, playing every game of the two seasons he spent with the franchise and starting 162 games. He averaged 1.3 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in that span, decent numbers but not the kind of production a title-winning point guard will give you.
Smush’s presence was part of a larger frustration for Kobe, who had pitiful rosters from 2004 to 2008 until the Lakers acquired Pau Gasol to be his co-star. They made three consecutive NBA Finals, winning the 2009 and 2010 titles but losing their first attempt in 2008. Parker was out of the NBA after 2008 but continued his playing career internationally until 2018.
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