The Official Los Angeles Lakers thread

[Javier]

Ill sticky it since basketball season is close

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Kobe Bryant Interview: Talking 81, Lakers, and NBA 07.

by Jon Robinson 
August 21, 2006 -
A few years ago, companies were running away from Kobe Bryant faster than he was running to the jewelry store. One settlement, $4 million in purple diamonds, and 81 points later, Kobe is once again ringing that endorsement cash register, even enticing a bidding war between Sony and 2K Sports for the rights to use him as a cover athlete for their upcoming videogames. When the final check cleared, it was Sony who signed Bryant to pose for NBA 07: The Life Vol. 2 while 2K Sports once again inked a deal with his one-time teammate, now cross-country rival, Shaquille O'Neal, proving that these two will forever be linked, even when it's not planned.


Kobe was on hand recently to unveil his new game at the Watts/Willowbrook Boys & Girls Club in Los Angeles, California, taking time out to challenge kids who were quick to use the Lakers guard to throw one down on, well, the Lakers guard.

"Every opportunity I get, I try to bring awareness to the Boys & Girls club," says Bryant, looking smooth in his purple and yellow stripped shirt. "You can make donations and all that, but anytime you can bring awareness to the clubs, that means more than just donations, because that money runs out."

And what about kids beating Kobe as Kobe?

"The only way to shut me down is to control the Lakers and bench me," Bryant laughs before taking on some more of his fans at NBA 07. "Being on the cover of a game, it's like the new Wheaties, it's that important to an athlete…it's the hot thing to do."

Here's what else the best player in the NBA had to say as we talked about everything from dropping 81 on the Raptors to the importance of team chemistry.


IGN Sports: The videogame industry is plagued by a cover curse. It has taken down everyone from Michael Vick to Amare. Should Laker fans be concerned?

Kobe Bryant: Hmmm…no! Laker fans don't need to be concerned, there's no cover curse, but if you just jinxed me that means I'm coming after you. [laughs]

IGN Sports: Are you a big gamer?

Kobe Bryant: I'm a competitive individual, so if there's a competition involved, I'm all for it. I came from an extremely competitive household, and games between me and my cousins would get ruthless. Everything in my family was about bragging rights, so if you could beat someone using the worst team in the game, that was the best. It was all about challenges.

IGN Sports: Did you ever score 81 in a videogame?

Kobe Bryant: [laughs] I never even imagined I could do that in a videogame, let alone real life. I just never even thought about it.

IGN Sports: What was going through your head when you were scoring 81?

Kobe Bryant: Everything was happening in slow motion for me, and you just really want to stay in that moment. You don't want to step outside of yourself and think about what is going on because then you are going to lose that rhythm. You just need to keep going, then at the end of the game, I really just felt numb. I couldn't really grasp what had just happened.

IGN Sports: So when you get in a zone, everyone moves in slow motion?

Kobe Bryant: What it is, you start seeing where guys are going before they get there. It gives you the effect of the game being in slow motion. It's a combination of anticipation and visualization.

IGN Sports: Who is the toughest player for you to guard in real life that I need to look out for in the game?

Kobe Bryant: Carmelo Anthony. Push him right. Make him shoot a pull up going right.

IGN Sports: Your new game is all about team chemistry and how that chemistry affects the team in both positive and negative ways. How important is chemistry when it comes to winning in the NBA?

Kobe Bryant: You can't win unless you have chemistry, that's what it's about. You play 82 games to build chemistry, to build rhythm, to build togetherness, that way once you reach the playoffs, you're all on the same page. That's what makes the game so cool is that you have the opportunity to do that and build your chemistry. Take last season, it was a process for us, that's what we kept saying, the season was a process. The second half of the season, I think if you look at the last 23 games of the season, we only lost three. We went to the playoffs with a lot of momentum and played extremely well, and I think we're going to carry that momentum into next season.

IGN Sports: In that Suns series, you hit some last second shots that were just freakin' crazy. What is it about your personality that enables you to win games with everything riding on that one shot?

Kobe Bryant: You know what, you're just playing basketball. You're just playing basketball and all you need to do is remember that you're just playing the game you've been playing since you were a kid. I've been playing since I was three years old. A lot of times, you enter these professional levels and the pressure and expectations take the fun out of it. You start worrying instead of just playing. You need to get back to just playing the game and have a good time at it. When you do that, the ball goes in.

IGN Sports: You're here at the Boys & Girls Club, ESPN recently ran the segment about how you helped out with the Make A Wish Foundation, how important is it for you to give back to your fans through charity?

Kobe Bryant: It's very important. These kids are facing some serious challenges in their lives, and you ask them what their wish is, and whether it's to meet you or meet me, whatever it is, that's their one wish. That's incredible that meeting me is someone's dream, so to be able to grant those wishes is truly special. That was a great series ESPN did. I think it showed the beauty of sports and what sports can do to make a difference in people's lives. That's what it's all about.
 

[Stone Cold is Bout It, Bout It]

Kobe use to have some great commercials, These are way better then the wack ass commercials LuBUM And shaq's puppet have....And his new Nike commercial shits on all the other commercials too.

[GangstaBoogy]

Kobe use to have some great commercials, These are way better then the wack ass commercials LuBUM And shaq's puppet have....And his new Nike commercial shits on all the other commercials too.

yeah i miss having kobe as the face of the nba. although i do like that lebron sprite commercial where he was break-dancing.

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Kobe use to have some great commercials, These are way better then the wack ass commercials LuBUM And shaq's puppet have....And his new Nike commercial shits on all the other commercials too.

yeah i miss having kobe as the face of the nba. although i do like that lebron sprite commercial where he was break-dancing.

Kobe was never the face of the NBA...

[GangstaBoogy]

Kobe use to have some great commercials, These are way better then the wack ass commercials LuBUM And shaq's puppet have....And his new Nike commercial shits on all the other commercials too.

yeah i miss having kobe as the face of the nba. although i do like that lebron sprite commercial where he was break-dancing.

Kobe was never the face of the NBA...

WRONG!

in other news: everyone enjoy this vid. LMAO @ scottie pippin

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Kobe use to have some great commercials, These are way better then the wack ass commercials LuBUM And shaq's puppet have....And his new Nike commercial shits on all the other commercials too.

yeah i miss having kobe as the face of the nba. although i do like that lebron sprite commercial where he was break-dancing.

Kobe was never the face of the NBA...

WRONG!

in other news: everyone enjoy this vid. LMAO @ scottie pippin

Not wrong, idiot...Around the time these commercials were airing, Vince Carter was billed as the face of the NBA, and Shaq had a lot more exposure than Kobe ever did, Kobe was ALWAYS hated by the media...PeACe

[Antonio_]

Kobe use to have some great commercials, These are way better then the wack ass commercials LuBUM And shaq's puppet have....And his new Nike commercial shits on all the other commercials too.

yeah i miss having kobe as the face of the nba. although i do like that lebron sprite commercial where he was break-dancing.

Kobe was never the face of the NBA...

WRONG!

in other news: everyone enjoy this vid. LMAO @ scottie pippin

Not wrong, idiot...Around the time these commercials were airing, Vince Carter was billed as the face of the NBA, and Shaq had a lot more exposure than Kobe ever did, Kobe was ALWAYS hated by the media...PeACe

I have to agree. Here i live in Italy, not the best place to judge Kobe's popularity tho, but even here, it was Allen Iverson, Vince Carter, Shaq, Penny, Lebron, Melo. Kobe was never been "the face of the NBA". Never.

[wcsoldier]

Kobe use to have some great commercials, These are way better then the wack ass commercials LuBUM And shaq's puppet have....And his new Nike commercial shits on all the other commercials too.

yeah i miss having kobe as the face of the nba. although i do like that lebron sprite commercial where he was break-dancing.

Kobe was never the face of the NBA...

WRONG!

in other news: everyone enjoy this vid. LMAO @ scottie pippin

Not wrong, idiot...Around the time these commercials were airing, Vince Carter was billed as the face of the NBA, and Shaq had a lot more exposure than Kobe ever did, Kobe was ALWAYS hated by the media...PeACe

I have to agree. Here i live in France, not the best place to judge Kobe's popularity tho, but even here, it was Allen Iverson, Vince Carter, Shaq, Penny, Lebron, Melo. Kobe was never been "the face of the NBA". Never.

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Watch Luke's acting debute here-
http://www.dubcnn.com/connect/index.php?topic=119273.msg1235816#msg1235816

[Stone Cold is Bout It, Bout It]

ESPN Classic is going to show Lakers vs Cavs (FEB 24, 2004) @ 3:00 PM Westcoast time.. 

EDIT: ^^ Fuck that game..Kobe didn't play b/c of Injury

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

ESPN Classic is going to show Lakers vs Cavs (FEB 24, 2004) @ 3:00 PM Westcoast time.. 

EDIT: ^^ Fuck that game..Kobe didn't play b/c of Injury

LMAO...

Laker fan or Kobe fan?

[Stone Cold is Bout It, Bout It]

Laker fan or Laker dickriding HOMER

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Laker fan or Laker dickriding HOMER

Just Laker...

[GangstaBoogy]

Dirk Nowitzki gave his opinion on Team USA and Kobe...


Sport1: What did the Americans lack?

Nowitzki: It was bitter that Kobe Bryant got injured. His presence alone would have been enough to win the tournament. That's the level I see him on. To me he is the best player in the world right now. That guy doesn't know fear at all. He doesn't care. He would have won it for the Americans single-handedly.

Hey, the man is honest.