Former Los Angeles Lakers teammate Matt Barnes recounted back on Kobe Bryant’s tenacity on the defensive end
The Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant still echoes in the hearts of many, even after his untimely passing. Although Matt Barnes and Bryant were originally rivals, and only played two seasons on the same team, the late legend left a heavy imprint on him. Recently, Barnes revisited Bryant’s defensive intensity during their time together.
In a collaboration episode of The Big Podcast and All The Smoke Podcast, Matt Barnes commented on Bryant’s tenacity on defense. Barnes shared how Kobe Bryant‘s drive to compete turned back on him at times. He described Bryant’s work ethic and how he strived to be one-of-a-kind for the game.
There would be times where would like, try to really cuss us out. Because we always guarded the best player to save his energy. But there would be times if that person hit 1 or 2, “Man get ****o out”,… So he would argue with me and Ron [Artest] on the court… I always say he had a ton of God-given ability, but I feel like he paid God back every day for how hard he worked with that ability.
Matt Barnes on Kobe Bryant
The Lakers legend was known for his ability to play both ends of the court, but this same tenacity seems to be a double-edged sword for the ‘Mamba’. According to Barnes, Bryant’s competitive side on defense used to hamper his offensive workload. As a result, the 5-time Champion faced many injury setbacks due to his overworking habits.
“I always say he had a ton of god given ability, but I feel like he paid god back everyday for how hard he worked with that ability.”
– Matt Barnes on Kobe Bryant 👏
New episode ft. All the Smoke here: https://t.co/UFpNzWtPtn pic.twitter.com/hXo44wXw3f
— The Big Podcast (@bigpodwithshaq) October 26, 2024
For the 14-year-old veteran, Bryant was one of the hardest workers he had seen. For him, the late star magnified every ounce of talent he was blessed with. The two played together for only two years, but later met as coaches for their children, and the mutual respect can be still felt by Barnes.
How good was Kobe Bryant on the defensive end?
Kobe Bryant was regarded as one of the best perimeter guard defenders during his time. With his staggering height of 6-feet-6, Bryant was among the best on that end. He collected over 12 All-NBA Defensive nods during his career, ranking him to be the second most in the category, tied with Kevin Garnett.
It is worth keeping in mind that Bryant was pouring an average of 30+ points per game on the offensive side. The former Laker racked up a defensive rating of only 105.5 in his career, which is quite shy in comparison to other all-time great defenders. Contrary to modern stats, the 2008 NBA MVP managed to steal the ball 1,944 times in his career, pairing it with an impressive 640 blocks.
Kobe was playing defense like this while averaging 36 points per game this Nigga was INSANE !!! pic.twitter.com/cyZshagi2K
— 23🩸 (@Top1Big23) September 4, 2024
Although advanced defensive analytics may downplay Bryant’s defensive prowess, his impact was hard to miss. For a player of his stature and offensive burden, he maximized every facet of both spectrums. What he accomplished in 20 seasons on both sides of a basketball game will be likely to be non-replicable.