When it comes to having the toughest mentality and work ethic, there’s hardly anyone who can rival the late NBA legend, Kobe Bryant. The Mamba showcased his talent in the NBA for 20 long years and, even in his last season, wanted to be better than everyone around him.
Byron Scott recently revealed a story about Kobe texting him at 4 AM to find out the details about training for the next day. The incident surprisingly took place when Kobe was in his last season.
Now imagine how hard Kobe must have trained during the early days of his NBA career. We are talking about the time when he wanted to make a name for himself. His mindset at the time must have been completely different.
Shaquille O’Neal On The Difference Between Him And Kobe
The Los Angeles Lakers have had some amazing players don the iconic Purple and Gold jersey over the years. Kobe and Shaq remain two of the best players to represent the franchise.
The duo played eight seasons together and helped the Lakers win three NBA Championships. Evidently they were aware of each other’s training regime and mindset. In a recent podcast, Shaq was asked about how would he define the late NBA legend’s mindset.
(Starts at 2:45):
“It was alien-like. When he was 18, he used to be in the locker room dribbling and shooting without the ball for hours. And then you see him practice the same move on the court. Like he was obsessed with being the best ever. I was obsessed with being the most dominant, he was obsessed with being the best ever and sometimes you sacrifice a lot of things, and he did. All he did was work out.”
Shaq shared that even from the age of just 18, Kobe had an insane mindset. He believes it was because he wanted to be the best player ever in the NBA.
Kobe’s hard work paid off as when he retired from the league, the Mamba was widely regarded by fans as one of the best players to ever grace the league with his presence.
