Kobe Bryant and LeBron James are the two biggest superstars the NBA has seen since Michael Jordan. When it comes to popularity, winning, and overall ability, the two are the only ones since MJ to have an argument to be considered the GOAT. And considering that LeBron came into the league in 2003, their careers overlapped for over a decade.
At that time, perhaps the one thing fans wanted to see the most was Kobe and Bron going head-to-head in the NBA Finals. It never came to pass for one reason or another, although both won multiple titles after 2009 till Bryant’s retirement. Considering how big both were, a rivalry was almost expected by the league, and it’s fans.
However, despite everyone’s best efforts to manufacture some tension between the two, they always admired each other’s game. An interview from 2009, when both were at the top of their game, has shown how highly Bryant and James thought of one another.
LeBron James: “Never judge a book by it’s cover because they don’t know that person. He’s (Kobe) definitely somebody you can be around all the time.”
Kobe Bryant: “He’s (LeBron) actually 35 years old. He’s been on this earth longer than what people think he has been. That’s where that comes from. That’s wisdom. We both have the same passion, we just show it in different ways. He’s just jumping off a trampoline off of one leg. It’s the most ridiculous one-leg takeoff I’ve seen. It’s crazy.”
LeBron James: “His midrange jumper is by far one of the best, if not the best, that we have in our league. Two dribble, pump-fake, reverse spin, shot. Yeah, I watch it. Yeah, I study it.”
Kobe Bryant: “That’s who he is, man. He just loves having a great time, laughing and joking. There’s a mutual respect we have for one another. it’s the type of respect that allows us to play at a high level when we compete against each other.”
LeBron James: “Automatically makes you better.”
Kobe Bryant: “I would be disrespecting LeBron if I didn’t compete hard with him.
LeBron James: “We make each other better and it’s the respect factor that we have for each other. But at the end of the day, we are ultimate competitors.
The key to the competition between Kobe Bryant and LeBron James was that both of them really respected one another. Kobe’s passing is something LeBron has often paid tribute to, and it’s evident that the King misses the Mamba and the bond they shared. Competition is the essence of the game, but Kobe and LeBron proved that it was possible to respect one another throughout that process.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zw7Qxy6aKeY
