Every good baseball fan has watched “The Sandlot,” but it appears even basketball icons enjoy the movie, too.
ESPN’s Jemele Hill asked Kobe Bryant last weekend about reports that he’s not a good friend, and his response seemed to resemble a famous line from the film.
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While some fans might take issue with the Los Angeles Lakers star’s comments, his methodology has resulted in immense success. According to Professor Bryant’s winning equation, zero friends plus Kobe Bryant equals five championship banners. The rest of the NBA should take note.
Kobe also commented on Lakers first-round draft pick Larry Nance Jr.’s controversial tweet — which has since been deleted — referring to Bryant’s 2003 sexual assault case in Colorado. Nance reached out to the probable Hall of Famer and apologized for the incident.
“The kid figured it out himself,” Bryant told Hill. “I said, ‘Dude, listen. We’ve all said things and done things that we regret and wish we could take back. It’s water under the bridge, man. Welcome to the team.’ ”
The text conversation between Bryant and Nance also prompted the two-time NBA Finals MVP to think about his retirement.
“This is when you know it’s about time to hang these things up, when your teammate (Nance) writes you, Hi, Mr. Bryant,” he jokingly remarked.
The 36-year-old’s contract is set to expire after the 2015-16 NBA season, so his life as “Mr. Bryant” might not be too far away.
Thumbnail photo via Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports Images
