“Penny Hardaway was not nice to 15-year-old me so I carried that”: 6’6 Kobe Bryant channeled his inner Michael Jordan and took it personally against Magic superstar

Kobe Bryant revealed that Penny Hardaway was not nice to him when he was 15 years old and so he carried that with him. 

Kobe Bryant was almost destined to indulge in the world of basketball. His father, Joe Bryant, played in the NBA as a member of the Sixers, Clippers, and Rockets from 1975 to 1983 and then would take his wife, Pamela, and son to Europe, mainly Italy, to play basketball overseas. 

Aside from his father, Kobe’s uncle on his maternal side was an NBA player named ‘Chubby’ Cox who played for the Washington Bullets in 1983. It’s safe to say that Bryant delving into basketball at the ripe age that he did back in Italy made sense and his dominance is even more self-explanatory. 

With Joe Bryant having connections to personnel in the NBA, he helped forge Kobe Bryant into a player that fit to lay in the league. Moving his family back to Philadelphia during Kobe’s teenage years, Bryant played at Lower Merion High School and established himself as the best player in high school ball by the time 1996 had rolled around.

Also read: Klay Thompson honors fellow 6’6 athlete and Laker legend Kobe Bryant and Gianna Bryant at the 2022 ESPYS 

Kobe Bryant took it personally against Penny Hardaway. 

‘Bean’s’ father having played in the NBA gave him perks that allowed him to mingle with superstars in the league. Joe used this to introduce several of them to his son. When Kobe Bryant was asked later in his illustrious career if he ever got any signed memorabilia from players, he said: 

“My father actually got me an autograph from Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Horace Grant, Penny Hardaway, and Shaquille O’Neal. How funny is that though. Shaq was actually really nice to me when I met him when I was 15 years old. Penny, not so much. I kind of carried that with me for the rest of my career.” 

Even back when Kobe Bryant was in high school, it seems as though he ‘took things personally’ the way his idol, Michael Jordan, did. 

In the 18 times that Penny Hardaway and Kobe met in the NBA, the Lakers legend walked away with a solid 67% win rate. Many have called a March 21st, 1999 game between the Lakers and the Magic a sort of revenge game for Bryant where he dropped 38 points on Penny all while guarding him well on the other end.

Also read: Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal came together after Shareef O’Neal got the 2009 All-Star MVP trophy