Devin Booker has had enough of people bringing down the new generation of players that were inspired and even coached by Kobe Bryant. It’s not a secret that the Black Mamba was a fierce competitor during his active days, but once he called it a career, he embraced the role of mentor, helping many players improve their level.
Players like Kyrie Irving and Kawhi Leonard, to name a few, trained with Kobe and learned a couple of things about his Mamba Mentality. Younger players like Devin Booker and Jayson Tatum have paid homage to the Black Mamba, but not everybody is happy with their actions.
Some people think they’re doing too much trying to pay respect to Kobe, but Booker thinks differently. During a recent interview with Cameron Tabatabaie of USA Today Sports, the Phoenix Suns young star called out those who criticize him and Tatum for representing Bryant, explaining that Kobe was an inspiration for them, and they’re just trying to carry his legacy.
CT: OK, who loves Kobe Bryant more, you or Jayson Tatum?
DB: We both love him a lot. The thing about that, I’ll elaborate on that. I see (Tatum) getting hate just representing Kobe and being inspired by him. But Kobe always said his one job is to inspire the next generation — that’s what he’s done for us.
He is gonna live forever in this game and not even just in basketball. Just his approach to life and how he’s changed and shaped so many people. I think it’s foolish for people to give hate to somebody like me or Jayson representing one of our idols.
These players have been criticized for these actions, with some saying they must win before being able to even pay respect to Kobe. Just like them, Kobe was a young player trying to figure things out in the league. Booker and Tatum have a lot of time ahead where they can win a couple of championships to make their mentor proud.
Sometimes they fail to meet expectations, which is why people prefer not to link them with Kobe, but they’ll have many chances to prove doubters wrong in the future. Once that happens, nobody can tell anything to them.
