LeBron James has opened up about his friendship with Kobe Bryant. He revealed that while their relationship was initially built on competition, it deepened after they shared the court and hit key milestones in their careers.
Bryant, who tragically passed away in a helicopter crash in 2020, became a meaningful presence in James’ life over time, according to PEOPLE.
“Until I became a Laker and he retired, that’s when our relationship became like really, really good,” James, 40, recalled during an interview with The Pat McAfee Show last week. “He welcomed me. He called me, like, ‘Bro anything you need in L.A., I got you. You a Laker now, you family.’ We would have multiple conversations. Obviously, you saw him coming to a lot of games, things of that nature.”
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“And when I passed him in the scoring record in Philly, I think he had a tweet out there like, ‘Keep on going, keep transcending the game…’ That s— meant so much to me,” James added of Bryant’s final tweet in January 2020, when he acknowledged James passing him on the all-time scoring list.
He explained that his bond with Bryant grew after he joined the Los Angeles Lakers in 2018, two years after Bryant’s retirement. Speaking on The Pat McAfee Show, James noted that several key moments on the court further solidified their connection.
“We was on the Olympic team, we had a great relationship there,” James said of their experiences teaming up in both 2008 and 2012. “But it was always competitive between us. We were always like, I was on the east coast, he was on the west coast.”
James recalled the missed opportunity to face Bryant in the 2009 NBA Finals, as his Cleveland Cavaliers fell to the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference Finals, denying fans a highly anticipated championship showdown between the two legends.
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“I f—– up one time in ’09, I think it was ’09, and didn’t beat Orlando and didn’t get an opportunity to play him in the finals,” James said.
While reflecting on his bond with Bryant during the interview, James shared that his relationship with Michael Jordan is in “a good spot”.
“We don’t talk,” James said, adding that he believes it’s because he’s “still playing” in the NBA.
“We all know MJ. Even if you don’t know him personally, he’s one of the most ruthless competitors there is. ‘Til I’m done and he doesn’t have to look at me run up and down wearing the number 23 and every time my name is mentioned, it’s mentioned with his. He’s like, ‘I don’t want to f—— talk to you,” James joked.
James delved deeper on his bond with Bryant, recalling how meaningful it was to earn the Lakers legend’s approval after joining the team in 2018.
“I do remember when I decided to come here, he sent me a text right away and said, ‘Welcome, brother. Welcome to the family,’ ” James said. “That was a special moment because, at the time, Laker faithful wasn’t [fully in on me]. A lot of people were saying, ‘Well, we might not want LeBron at this point in his career,’ and, ‘Is he right? Is he going to get us back [to the Finals]?’”
“So to hear from him and get his stamp of approval, it meant a lot,” James said. “I don’t ever question myself, but when it’s coming from Kobe, it definitely meant a lot.”
