Kobe Bryant was one of the most hard-working athletes ever. While he had a lot of skills and knowledge of the game, his work ethic set him apart. Rarely did anyone get the better of the Black Mamba after challenging him. He would make it a mission to not only win but destroy the opposition in the process.

Bryant was at his best when people doubted him. He loved proving doubters wrong. In the 1996 NBA Draft, Bryant became the first guard to be drafted straight out of high school. While most franchises didn’t believe that he would transition to the NBA the way he did, the Charlotte Hornets General Manager went a step further and disrespected Bryant.

During his appearance on the podcast “Knuckleheads”, Kobe Bryant revealed what actually went down on Draft Day. Bryant said that he knew that the Hornets were looking to trade him to the Los Angeles Lakers. He said, “I get on the phone with the Charlotte GM and he just tells me, ‘you know what’s going on right?’ and I’m like yeah, yeah.”

Bryant continued, “He goes, ‘well it’s a good thing that we’re trading you because we couldn’t have used you anyway‘”. He was surprised to be hearing that on draft day, and he took it as a challenge.

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“I was already triggered. I was ready to go to the gym, like, f**k the media. I don’t wanna do any more interviews, ” Bryant fumed. He was confused by the way the GM spoke to him. He said, “What you telling me that for? I’m 17.”

The Charlotte Hornets definitely regretted trading Kobe Bryant away

While the Charlotte Hornets remained a Playoff team for the next few years after trading Bryant, they have been one of the NBA’s worst franchises. Their best performances were in the 2000-01 and 2001-02 seasons when they reached the Conference Semis. However, they have only qualified for the Playoffs thrice since then.

Meanwhile, Kobe went on to become one of the greatest players of all time. He spent the entirety of his 20-year career with the Lakers and won five championships while breaking numerous records. The Lakers fans should be grateful to the legendary Jerry West, who was the GM of the franchise at the time, for his instance in getting a young, unproven Bryant to the Lakers in 1996.

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This trade proved that one decision can change the trajectory of multiple franchises. The Lakers reaped the reward for taking a gamble on a high-school player while the Hornets have never truly recovered.