Kobe Bryant had perhaps the most grueling work ethic of all time amongst his fellow NBA legends. The 5x NBA champion didn’t win those 5 titles without pushing himself to his limit day in and day out. Whether it was 4am shootarounds or 8am bicycle rides in the blistering sun, Bryant was up for it all.
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There are very few who can match up to Kobe when it comes to the amount of work you put in behind closed doors. Michael Jordan is someone who comes to mind, especially when he hired Tim Grover to prepare him for the physicality he would face against the Detroit Pistons.
However, it was Grover himself who once said that the difference between Jordan and Bryant was that the former knew when to stop, the Lakers legend didn’t. So, it’s safe to say that if you’re being compared to Kobe from a work ethic perspective, you know you’re doing something right.
Antawn Jamison on Kobe Bryant and Gilbert Arenas.
Gilbert Arenas had an incredible 3-year peak from 2004 to 2007 where he was arguably the best scoring point guard in the entirety of the NBA for all 3 of those years. He was the blueprint for guys like Damian Lillard and Donovan Mitchell; shorter guards who slash and space when need be.
During an interview alongside his former Wizards teammate, Antawn Jamison, he would get an incredible amount of praise bestowed upon him by Jamison, who said both Arenas and Kobe Bryant shared a similar work ethic when it came to the game of basketball.
Arenas has stated in the past that he worked out with the same trainer who frequently worked out with both Dwyane Wade and Kobe. It was this man who helped ‘Agent Zero’ rehab his knee injury to a point where he could play the game for a couple more years.
Antawn Jamison played with Kobe Bryant
Jamison played with Gilbert Arenas during the latter end of his career but could still draw parallels between him and Kobe Bryant. He would play on the Lakers for a single year in 2012 and would be on the veteran’s minimum contract that gave him a little over $1.3 million.
Despite only being a part of the purple and gold for less than a year, he could see just how much work the 16-year vet shooting guard put into his body to get back into shape. Antawn would soon find himself on the Clippers and then retire.
