Larry Nance Jr. About playing with Kobe Bryant: ‘All he asked for us was all we had’

To remember the life of Kobe Bryant five years after his heartbreaking departure, I spoke with Larry Nance Jr., who was a rookie under Bryant’s last season in the NBA.

Below are some excerpts from the latest episode of my podcast. To open our conversation, I joked with Larry about how he and Kobe “combined” to score 68 points in the last game of bought:

Larry: Look, the 60 was a lovely starter, but my eight was the meal we all came to. You honestly know what a special evening. Indeed. I mean, it was a really tough year. We had so many young guys there, we won 17 games. But the joy of people’s faces as they got to see Kobe personally for what they realized was the last time is just something I will never forget. I’ve done some cool things in my career, hopefully I can do some more cool things, but I can’t imagine what could take the place of the 60-point game. As for historical nights, I can’t imagine what could take the place for it.

Kevin: What was the first thing in your mind when you became a draft lakers and knew you would be a teammate of Kobe Bryant?

Larry: It was the one guy that you just knew like “I can’t piss this guy off.” At that time, the older generation of players was on the way out, but like Kobe still had that mentality. Kg was still in the league. There were certain guys that you just didn’t mess with. And then the first thing, the first thing we all were like, okay, how do I get on this guy’s good side? How do I become? What should I do for this guy that just not put me in his sights? And I found that pretty easy. All he asked for us was all we had. That was it. And I can do that. Everyone can do it. No, he didn’t ask you to be a superstar. He didn’t ask you to make every shot. He just asked you what you have, I need it all. I need what you have. 100% of it. And that’s how I got on the field my rookie year. It was like defense and playing harder than anyone else. And I feel like we were tied up with the fact that every possession we both just tried at 100%.

Kevin: Was there ever a case of the season when you bored anger?

Larry: One of the games we were down with 30 right away. We never had a sniff of chance, as if it were over. He didn’t play, but he was with us on the trip. And I will never forget, just like Byron Scott talked to us in the dressing room afterwards and were just kind of like, ”Hi this is NBA. There are no easy nights that you are the easy evening right now. That’s us. We are the easy evening. You had to prepare for it. “

Scott then turned to Kobe and asked what he had to say to the team.

Larry: I was ready for my lashing. At that time I was signed to adidas. But there were a few guys who were signed with Nike and were wearing Kobes. He goes, “You, you, you, you, you, you,” and pointed to everyone with Kobes. “Take them off, put them in the trash, leave them here. You never carry them again. “And it was a moment of similar” haha ​​funny. ” And then it became a lot, much, “he doesn’t laugh.” And then the guys who were wearing them took them off and put them in the trash. They should never be worn again. “

Kevin: Poor Nick Young, right?

Larry: When he talked about Nick Young, before the last game, and after that game, Kobe was, he was just incredible with us as teammates. As he would sign if you asked for something signed, he just would, “of course man, absolutely.” So there was a line of us after the game, just we had our stuff. We had our things. “Could you sign this for me? Can I have a picture? “We are all fans at the end of the day. After me, Nick Young was notorious signed with adidas. And he would carry Kobes, he would have crazy 8s. And that was the only time Nick was like “Hello man can I get you to sign these?” And handed him the crazy 8s and Kobe was like “man, get these out of my vision” and put them in the trash. It was such a funny moment because Nick and him always had that quarrel back and forth. Nick also had a sweater, and Kobe signed it for him, but it was like a funny moment of similar, this is really your guys’ relationship, it’s a nonstop madness.

Kevin: The first game you played after his death, there were footage of you, tears in your eyes, cried on the bench. What do you especially remember about that game, how hard it was to play that game?

Larry: I’m not an emotional person. I hate it’s out there.

Kevin: That’s okay. There is nothing wrong with being vulnerable and feeling.

Larry: No, you’re right. I’m just not an emotional, like crier. When I found out, I didn’t cry, it was just a very solemn feeling that I got. But it hit me during the national anthem. We had a moment of silence and it just ate me up. I hadn’t cried to that point. It just happened. I can’t tell you what happened in the game. I don’t know if we won or lost. I don’t care. There was just something bigger. When we played the next home game, I saw in the first half a few guys do it and I wore 24 in the first half. And I still have that shirt just because it meant something to me. I don’t even know how well I played. It doesn’t matter. It meant something to me. So it hangs up in my house.

Larry and I went deeper into our respective upbringing and looked at Bryant. Like many NBA fans, we both had our phases that hated him before they stayed to love and admire him. Larry had a great story about it, including as you can clock or listen to Kevin O’Connor Show.