There are many stories about Kobe Bryant’s crazy work ethic, which explains how he became the best player of a generation, won five championships and could have gotten even more than his idol if certain things didn’t happen. Bryant was always thinking of getting better and the offseason was like Christmas for him, as he used that time to improve his level and be miles ahead of his rivals.
It’s well known how dedicated he was to his body and his game, which is why many people were shocked to learn how seriously he took everything. One of his former teammates revealed how Kobe invited him to his workouts, which were called ‘blackouts’ and for due reason.
In an excerpt of Caron Butler’s interview on UNINTERRUPTED’s “Iman Amongst Men” show, Butler recalled how Kobe almost immediately took him to the gym after re-signing with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Caron Butler Breaks Down Infamous Kobe Bryant’s ‘Blackout’ Workouts
It didn’t take long for Kobe to spot Butler and ask him to train with him. The player asked for some time to get things right before entering Kobe’s world, which also shocked him.
Hearing a new Kobe Bryant career story is something you could never get tired of as a fan 🔥
Caron Butler takes us through his experience of ‘blacking out’ with the Black Mamba himself. pic.twitter.com/aup6LafuN3
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) September 21, 2022
“You go to Los Angeles and you see Kobe, he signs for $133, $134 million, and the second he signed the contract, he turned to the right, like, ‘hey, hey, motherf***er, let’s blackout.’ That was his workouts. They’re called ‘blackouts.’ And I was just like, ‘ok, dope, when we doing that?’ He’s like, ‘tomorrow, 7:00 AM black the f**k out. We about to black out.’ I was like, ‘oh, s**t.’ I was like, ‘I just came here for the a press conference. I had a suit. Let me get right. I’ll be here.’ We ended up going to work out. It was the reps of six or seven spots, where you’re doing 20 makes and you go out, 20, 20, 20, 20, go around, go back. More game speed, and then you start working on the counters, and you work your way out to the perimeter. Then you got two guys that come on, they’re defending like they’re the defensive rotation. You go through that whole sh*t for like 90 minutes to two hours and then you lift weights. And we done. I’m like, ‘all right.’ He’s like, ‘yeah, come back at six.’ I was like, alright, 6:00 AM?’ He’s like, ‘no, 6:00 PM. Get something to eat, come back. We do this sh*t again. Get this sh*t again.’ I was like, ‘damn… like, that’s different.'”
This is not the first time we’ve heard Butler talk about this. He previously told a similar story to Duncan Robinson, but this one is even crazier. The fact that Kobe went through that and then did it again less than 12 hours later was just incredible. He was obsessed with being the best and did everything in his power to reach that level.
That’s why Kobe is one of the greatest players of all time, inspiration and idol for many, and one of the craziest workers in the NBA. Butler spent only one season with the Lakers, but there’s no doubt he learned a lot from the Black Mamba and his intense workout routine.
