Kobe Bryant was hyper-competitive during his playing days and only respected those who matched his drive and ambition. Not many young players could meet the high bar that the Lakers icon had set, but Derrick Rose was the exception and earned his respect and admiration.
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During an appearance on The OGs podcast, the guard’s former teammate James Johnson reminisced about Bryant showing love to the former MVP after a hard-fought battle on the court. He said,
“We just got done playing the Lakers, and we’re walking to our locker room, and Bean [Bryant] just looked at him, and was like, ‘You a bad motherfu**er!’ That gave me the chills, he wasn’t even talking to me. I was like, ‘My man is the one for real.’”
Johnson is likely referring to the November 2010 game between the Bulls and Lakers at the Crypto.com Arena. Rose put on a clinic and finished the game with 30 points, eight assists, and five rebounds. Bryant had a quiet outing by his lofty standards, as he scored 20 points, provided five assists, and grabbed only two rebounds.
However, Lamar Odom and Shannon Brown’s 21 points each were enough to help the Lakers beat the Bulls by seven points. However, the show’s star was Rose, who’d go on to win the MVP award at the end of this season.
After giving him props on his way to the locker room, Bryant also had a private conversation with the young guard. When asked what he told the then-Bulls star during an interview with Slam Magazine, the Lakers icon said,
“I just told him to stay healthy and continue the job he’s doing. I don’t think you can develop (a killer instinct). You either have it or you don’t. He’s had it since he was in high school. That quality separates players I think. With players of equal ability, it’s about the engine you have inside. It certainly gives him an edge.’”
Rose was primed to become one of the faces of the league, but a slew of injuries derailed his career. However, he won an MVP award and earned Bryant’s respect, a distinction that not many boast.
