The 2008 Redeem Team was arguably one of the best Team USA rosters ever assembled. It featured the likes of Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, and many other superstars. The goal of the team was to bring home the gold medal after a disappointing performance in the 2004 Olympics.
Well, The Redeem Team achieved that goal in an amazing fashion. After all, a team that has Dwyane Wade coming off the bench simply seems too good to be true. But the biggest reason behind the success of the 2008 Team USA was the presence of Kobe Bryant on the roster.
At the time, Kobe was the face of the NBA and the best player on the planet. But the Kobe that showed up for Team USA had one striking difference: it was his leadership style. Even Carlos Boozer praised Kobe for leading the team without caring who was the alpha on the team alongside LBJ.
Kobe Bryant’s Lesser Talked Impact After His Stint With The 2008 Redeem Team
Bryant has been praised a lot for his efforts in the 2008 Olympics and the players around him. He even influenced LeBron, Wade, and Melo to wake up at 5:30 AM and start training.
NBA analyst Bill Simmons recently spoke about the impact on the careers of the three superstars after spending that summer around Bryant.
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“The Redeem Team doc had that part about when Kobe shows up and the young guys like Carmelo, LeBron and Wade were coming back from the club. Kobe was going to work out at 5:30 in the morning. They were like, ‘Wait, what’s going on?’ By Friday, they were working out with him and they go through that experience. They go to the next season. LeBron wins the MVP, Wade has the best season he’s ever had, Carmelo almost makes the Finals. It was all caused by osmosis around that.”
As mentioned by Simmons, LeBron, D-Wade, and Carmelo saw instant results after spending just one summer around Kobe. It’s a true testament to Bryant’s work ethic and mentality to get ahead of everyone around him. The growth of these three NBA superstars is proof that Bryant’s strategy works despite being tough for most to pull off.
