Kobe Bryant recently joined Bill Simmons and Jalen Rose in a podcast to discuss his career with Shaq, his legacy as a Laker, and other NBA and personal topics.
We listened to the whole interview so you don’t have to--and share some of the best parts below.
On taking a lead role for the Lakers, starting in the 2000 playoffs:
It was [my coming out moment]. I didn’t realize it at the time, at the time it just felt like I was just playing basketball. I had worked on that pull-up shot all summer, so it just felt like I was in a gym again by myself, just doing what I‘d been training to do. A shot that I’d taken thousands and thousands of times.
But for us, during those teams, during those eras, I was the taskmaster, I was driving the team, I was bringing out that emotion, that aggression, by any means necessary. I was kicking them in the butt all the time. Shaq and I played off of each other that way. He was a guy that would put his arm around teammates and giving them encouragement. During that time, that was just naturally who we are, but at the same time Shaq had a lot of dog in him and he would rip your head off in order to win.
On his drive to work:
I never looked at it as work, I didn’t realize it was work until my first year in the NBA, when I came around I was surrounded by other professionals, and I thoguht basketball was going to be everything to them and it wasn’t. I’m like, ’this is different.‘ I thought everybody was obsessive about the game like me. I was like, ’oh, so that’s hard work.'
On when he’s going to retire:
I’m just going to play, it wouldn’t be true to who I’ve been my entire career to do a farewell tour. First of all, it would feel weird. To have these celebrations. I‘d much rather they treat me the way they’ve been treating me my entire career--that’s a sign of respect to me. ... When do you know? It’s like when you stand at halfcourt and we’re all taking halfcourt shots, just kind of goofing around, you make one and you’re like ’let me see if I can make another one.‘ Make another one. ’Let me see if I can make another one.‘ And then you miss. ’Well, I can’t end on a miss. Let me keep going.‘ So then you make one. ’I wonder if I can make another one?‘ And it goes on and on and on. The cycle just repeats itself. So at what point do you say ’enough is enough, it’s time to walk away from this thing.‘ I don’t know if that moment ever truly exists. You kind of have to feel it inside of yourself and say ’you know what I’m ready to move on and do something else.’
On getting to choose when to retire:
It’s a good issue to have. It’s a good issue to have. It is what it is. I understand that no matter when that time comes, I understand that a year from that moment, I’m going to want to play again, right? Because you’re going to miss it. And I accept that.
On importance of remaining a Laker:
It’s of utmost importance. I was such a diehard Lakers fan growing up. And just my personality. For me to ask for a trade, or to go play someplace else to try to chase a championship, that’s not me man. That’s not what my career has been about. That’s not who I am. I stay with it. Stuff that I’ve been through in my life, been through in my career, if it’s taught me anything it’s the fact that you‘ll have good moments, you’ll have bad moments, you‘ll have great moments, you’ll have horrible moments, you just keep going through all of them and things work themselves out.
