“I had 17-points against Kobe Bryant in the first quarter but was benched the entire second half”: Luol Deng on being called out for not playing defense on the Black Mamba

Former NBA player Luol Deng dropped seventeen points against Kobe Bryant in the first quarter but got benched the entire second half.

Kobe Bryant’s competitive zeal to succeed and assassin mentality is no secret. Nobody was immune to the Black Mamba’s killer instinct on the hardwood, whether it was a rookie or a veteran. Kobe’s impeccable work ethic is no secret. The five-time NBA champion took pride in one thing only- winning.

During an appearance on the podcast Rematch with Etan Thomas, Bulls veteran Luol Deng spoke about his experience of playing against Kobe in his rookie year.

“The game is about to start, and we get into the center of the court. And Kobe kind of leans over and kind of nudges me and you know I’ll never forget this and he was just like ‘I would have been a better freshman than you’ cause Kobe always loved Duke, he never went to Duke so he’s like I would have been a better freshman than you.”

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Deng revealed how that conversation ignited him, making him drop 17-points in the first quarter. However, Bulls head coach Scott Skiles would bench him in the second half of the game.

Luol Deng recalls playing Kobe Bryant for the first time.

Deng faced the Black Mamba for the first time in November 2004. The game took place at Staples Center, with the Lakers beating the Bulls 102-93. Kobe was the leading scorer on both teams, dropping 29-points, 10-rebounds, and 7-assists.

On the other hand, coming off the bench, Deng had 21-points during the game, which included 17-points in the first quarter. The two-time All-Star was 10-for-16 from the field. Surprisingly, despite having a great night, Deng sat out the entire second half.

“And in the first quarter, you know everything is going in. You know I am catching the ball, shooting, and driving. I had 17-points in the first quarter. We get to half-time, and we get into the locker room. Scott Skiles goes off on me that I’m not guarding Kobe, I’m not playing defense. I think what he was trying to do, at the time I was young, I think he was trying to motivate me to keep going. His whole thing was you’re thinking about scoring and you’re not guarding this guy, so the second half comes, I start the second half and he yanks me to the bench, so I catch an attitude, and the game gets away.”

Kobe instilling fear in the minds of his opponents was nothing new. The Lakers legend was one of the biggest trash talkers in the league, something he imbibed from the great Michael Jordan.

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Surprisingly, Deng would sign with the Lakers in July of 2016. However, Kobe had retired from the game a few months before.