In a sitdown with Serge Ibaka on his show, ‘How Hungry Are You?’ Bulls star DeMar DeRozan told a number of interesting stories about his past.
In one particular segment, he described an encounter with Kobe Bryant that has many fans smiling. According to DeRozan, it all started when he wore a pair of Jordan’s during a game against Bryant and the Lakers:
“The relationship we had, I always wore his shoe. I remember walking out and the first thing he did was look at my feet. I was like ‘nah I ain’t wearing his shoes to play against him tonight.’ So I wore Jordans. And he said ‘what the f–k you got those on for?’ He was mad at me for doing that and he ended up hitting the game-winner on us that night, too. Talking trash and everything. Ever since then, I never ever put another pair of Jordans on.”
Bryant and DeRozan were tight back in the day, so it’s no surprise that Kobe took things personally when he saw DeMar wearing Jordans that night. It is probably what fueled his game-winner.
Kobe was always a competitive guy, and moments like those happened often. Throughout his career, the 5x Champion always left a strong impression and radiated a certain aura that has stuck with many of the people who witnessed it for themselves.
“It was surreal. I mean, it’s only 2 people I’ve been around that had that type of aura. Where it was just kinda like, godly,” said DeRozan. “It was him and Jordan. These 2 people, I swear. Every time I walked on the court it was just a different type of feeling, you know. Like I don’t even know what it was, but I had the opportunity at 15 to work with Kobe. And every summer we used to play run games at LMU out here in LA.”
“So I was 16, 17, 18 and was always like…it just didn’t feel real. So by the time I got to the league, I kinda knew what to expect, but it was definitely a different atmosphere.”
Kobe retired in 2016 and while he isn’t regarded as a better player than Michael, he was often compared to the Bulls legend. They shared a similar style of game as well as having a certain state of mind that made them a challenge for any opponent.
Bryant always respected MJ, but wearing Jordans back then was like the ultimate betrayal. Fortunately, DeMar learned his lesson.
