Kobe Bryant completely changed the meaning of hard work when he became a pro. The Lakers legend often preached the importance of working out consistently and as much as one can, even if it meant doing so at ungodly hours. Visits to the gym at 4 AM massively benefitted Bryant. However, Carmelo Anthony wasn’t wired the same way.
Advertisement
Anthony appeared on the Ball Magnets podcast and was asked to comment on the Black Mamba’s work ethic. The New York Knicks legend highlighted the early morning workouts and claimed that Kobe required it to have an edge over his opponents.
“Kobe was something totally different. Kobe was relentless. 4 o’clock in the morning, 6 o’clock in the morning… It worked for him… That’s what he needed to get the edge,” Melo said.
During the Redeem Team documentary, one of Anthony’s scenes went the most viral. He was frightened by the thought of waking up as early as Bryant did. The former 6ft 7” player reiterated himself, admitting that he wasn’t as relentless.
“You look at the USA Team documentary I said ‘I’m not used to working out at 5:30 in the morning’. Like that wasn’t me… I’m not relentless like that… I don’t want to challenge myself that hard, like I’m cool,” Anthony concluded.
Carmelo Anthony had a respectable NBA career. Without needing to wake up before the sun was even out, Anthony established himself as one of the best scorers in the league.
But, Bryant had a career good enough to make a case for him being a top 10 player in the league’s history. His incredible work ethic was the reason for the same.
Bryant stressed the importance of working out at 4 AM
A majority of the players in the NBA have been hard workers. However, none of them compare to Kobe Bryant. His love for the game and drive to be the best motivated him to consistently get better.
Bryant studied the daily schedules of his competitors and understood that players largely had two workout sessions in a day.
“So if you get up at 10 in the morning, train at 12. Train for 2 hours, 12-2… Start training at 6, train from 6-8… You go home… Those are two sessions,” Bryant said.
But to shine brighter than everybody else, he would add a third workout by waking up seven hours earlier.
“Imagine, you wake up at 3 and you train at 4, go 4-6, come home breakfast, relax. Now you back at it again, 9-11, you relax and now all of a sudden you back at it again, 2-4. Now you back at it again, 7-9. Look how much more training I have done by simply starting at 4,” Bryant concluded.
Waking up at 3 AM sounds freakishly impossible. However, Kobe followed the same regime every day for 20+ years. As a result, he has one of the most stacked resumes in NBA history – 18x All-Stars, 15x All-NBA, five titles, two finals MVPs, and one MVP.
