Inspiration comes in various forms and manners. For Klay Thompson, it was his father Mychal Thompson’s association with the Lakers that provided a foundation to interact with his idol and inspiration – Kobe Bryant.
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Mychal Thompson was not only a former NBA Champion with the Lakers, but he was also the radio announcer for the men in purple and gold for a long time. And naturally, his position put Thompson in close quarters with Laker royalty through the years.
Kobe Bryant was one such player with whom Mychal shared a relationship. And a young Klay Thompson, before finding NBA stardom himself, was a beneficiary of the same.
The Splash Brother was a fan of the Lakers superstar and was as star-struck as anyone around Kobe. And a particular dinner where Bryant dropped by to talk to his father remains an unbelievable memory to the Warriors guard.
A young Kobe Bryant joined the Thompsons at dinner for a chat and had Klay in disbelief.
During the first half of his career, a young Bryant thrilled the fans with his extreme athleticism and flair. “Fro”be as this version of Kobe was referred to, was quite the phenom and had taken the league by storm.
Naturally, as a young aspiring baller, Klay was a fan of the high-flying “Fro”be. And with his father being a part of the Lakers, the allure of the superstar only loomed larger on Klay.
At the peak of his fandom, to see his idol turn up for a chat over dinner with his pops seems to be a core memory for the Warriors star.
“I’m sitting at my table with my Uncle John and my dad. It’s just the three of us eating like soup or whatever. And Kobe comes and sits right next to my dad, just Kobe by himself. Nobody else. I’m like, of all the people you picked to sit with right now, you pick my Pops to talk to?! This is crazy. I didn’t say a word. I was so starstruck but I just remember sitting there like, I can’t believe it. This was Frobe at the time too” spoke Klay, describing his star-struck dinner.
Not every young boy gets to dine with his idol and Klay got to experience it early. And a young Klay certainly soaked in all the inspiration and went on to be a star in his own right in the NBA.
Klay Thompson even played against Kobe Bryant in the NBA.
Practice until your idols become your rivals is a common adage for ambitious youngsters in the world of sports. Klay Thompson, who met “Fro”be for dinner, later got to play and even win against his idol in the NBA.
Kobe held a 7-5 winning record over Klay during their overlap in the league. This, despite most of their meetings coming during the late stage of Bryant’s career.
Klay has gone on to emulate the championship mentality his idol propagated in the league. The story definitely would have better if the rings came in Laker colors – a fact Papa Thompson agrees with.
