Before he became an NBA legend, the late, great Kobe Bryant was already turning heads with his prodigious talent. Even as a teenager, he showcased skills that drew comparisons to the greats. His scrimmage with Jerry Stackhouse in 1996 has been one of the most impressive stories of a high school teenager taking on an NBA pro.
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Kobe played one-on-one with Stackhouse after being invited by 76ers coach John Lucas. Many reports suggest that Kobe dominated Stackhouse during a workout. But he wasn’t the only one the Black Mamba played against.
During an appearance on ALL THE SMOKE, Vernon Maxwell talked about his experience of playing against the teenager. Since they were both shooting guards, Maxwell was guarding Kobe during the game. After seeing his footwork and skills in the first few minutes, Maxwell realized, “This mother*cker is for real.”
Maxwell was no longer looking at Kobe as a high school player. Despite his intense efforts, he said, Kobe “really had my a** beat.” After testing his courage and skills, Maxwell decided to test him against the 90s staple physical game. To his surprise, Kobe thrived under that challenge as well, which led to an astonishing assessment, “This mother*cker play just like Mike [Michael Jordan].”
"This motherf*cker played just like Mike."
Vernon Maxwell admits he couldn’t guard a young Kobe Bryant when he faced him in a practice while he was in the NBA and Kobe was still in high school, and reveals he was one of the people who told Kobe to skip college and go straight to… pic.twitter.com/HL4dkD010X
— The Art Of Dialogue (@ArtOfDialogue_) March 26, 2025
Although Kobe was doing enough damage against NBA pros, he still had some areas he needed to work on, such as trash talk. But other than that, he was ready to be a pro.
Maxwell said, “That’s when I told Kobe Bean Bryant. I said, ‘Kobe, I want to tell you something, son.’ I said, ‘Man, don’t you touch no mother*ckin college form.’” He knew that Kobe was ready for the game after what he did to one of the best defenders in the league at the time.
Vernon Maxwell once fought Michael Jordan
The game was played differently in the 90s. It was intense, physical, and someone always ran the risk of getting their face disfigured by an elbow or a punch in the heat of the moment.
Michael Jordan, being as dominant as he was, played the physical game really well. MJ enjoyed getting in someone’s face and talking trash to them.
While his strategy used to scare some players, Maxwell was cut from the same cloth. During an appearance on Gil’s Arena, he talked about how they almost fought on the court. He said, “He’s so big and strong and likes to wrestle with you. Throwing elbows and sh*t, going above the neck…He wanted to see if you could take this.”
Once MJ hit Maxwell in his mouth, and as usual, he wasn’t expecting a response. However, the two-time NBA Champion immediately hit him in the face with his elbow. “The referee looked at us, we looked at him, and the ref said, ‘Yeah, go ahead.’” Maxwell said that the ref was happy to see someone standing up to MJ, who was usually the bully.
