Teary-Eyed Gary Payton Reveals Kobe Bryant’s Massive Plans Had He Not Died in Unfortunate Plane Crash
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BEVERLY HILLS, CA – FEBRUARY 05: Kobe Bryant attends the 90th Annual Academy Awards Nominee Luncheon at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on February 5, 2018 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Almost every Lakers fan remembers the iconic 2003 off-season when the Lakers signed Gary Payton and Karl Malone. It was video game stuff from the Lakers, as they already had Kobe Bryant and Shaq. Gary was a dominant force for the SuperSonics in the 90s and joined the Lakers super team to win his first championship. The Lakers didn’t win a championship, but Kobe got a mentor for a lifetime in Gary.
The Lakers built a super team back in 2003 and wanted to challenge for the championship once again, having last won in 2002. But sadly, it couldn’t happen as the Lakers lost to the Pistons in the Finals.
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MINNEAPOLIS, MN – DECEMBER 14: Kobe Bryant #24 of the Los Angeles Lakers waves to the crowd after passing Michael Jordan on the all-time scoring list with a free throw in the second quarter of the game on December 14, 2014 at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
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Gary Payton spent just one season with the Lakers and then moved on to the Celtics and then to Miami, where he finally won his first championship. However, during his short but incredible stint with the Lakers, he developed a strong bond with Kobe Bryant. Kobe‘s tragic loss in 2020 hurt Payton a lot. Payton recently revealed how he felt after hearing the tragic news and Kobe’s big plans for women’s basketball.
Gary Payton reveals Kobe Bryant’s massive plans for women’s basketball
Former NBA star Gary Payton recently appeared for an interview on VladTV. During the interview, he talked about Kobe’s plans for women’s basketball.
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WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA – FEBRUARY 26: NBA player Kobe Bryant attends the premiere of Showtime’s “Kobe Bryant’s Muse” at The London Hotel on February 26, 2015 in West Hollywood, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)
“A young man who was only 41 years old, was about to change women’s basketball and this happens,” Gary Payton said. “And it’s still a shock to me after two years that he’s gone and it’s coming up on a two-year anniversary real soon here. I got so many pictures up of him now in my house. That is crazy. I got all the books that’s still down there and all that. It’s like, I don’t know, I would have seen him a lot of more times.”
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Everyone knew Kobe was a ‘girl dad’. In fact, he called himself that several times. Kobe’s daughter, Gianna, who also passed away alongside Kobe, was a basketball prodigy. She used to learn from her father and dreamed of becoming a WNBA player in the future.
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As Payton revealed, Kobe had big plans for women’s basketball. Kobe loved his daughters more than anyone and it could have played an important role in his working towards women’s basketball.
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