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Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant (24) during the second quarter in game 3 of the first round of the NBA playoffs Friday, May 4, 2012 at Pepsi Center in Denver Colorado. AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post (Photo By AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
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Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant (24) during the second quarter in game 3 of the first round of the NBA playoffs Friday, May 4, 2012 at Pepsi Center in Denver Colorado. AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post (Photo By AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
When Kobe Bryant knew his time in the NBA was ending, he transformed into a different personality. It was no longer about individual winning, but grooming the league’s talented players with his great knowledge. Warriors’ Draymond Green experienced one such moment in 2016.
The Golden State Warriors were giants of the NBA during the mid-2010s decade. GSW won three titles in four seasons, which denotes how dominant they were. However, Draymond Green experienced a period where he lost all of his self-confidence.
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Green was suspended for Game 5 of the 2016 NBA Finals due to an accumulation of too many flagrant fouls. As a competitor, his confidence was pulled down due to the decision and a dejected Green then texted Kobe Bryant telling him that he was feeling “lost.”
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Draymond Green attends the NBA Fan Meeting at iTSCOM Studio & Hall on September 8, 2018 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Jun Sato/WireImage)
Kobe Bryant called Draymond Green and offered valuable advice
Green was massively let down by the fact that the NBA suspended him due to too many flagrant fouls. Being aggressive has always been the nature of Green’s game, but it all came to a standstill when the suspension came.
“I’m like Kobe, ‘I’ve built my career on toughness. I’ve built my career, attacking everyone that stepped in front of me and I feel like the league is trying to take that away from me, and you know it’s really bothering,’” Green recollected telling Bryant.
“And he said, ‘Dre, will tell you this – 99% of people in the world are just fine with mediocrity. You are chasing something so much greater than what they could ever understand’.”
Draymond Green emphasized why the call from Kobe Bryant was so important to his career. “To hear that from him it was like, it’s okay to keep being me and like regardless of how the league feels, regardless of how the media feels,” Green mentioned.
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The energetic Warriors forward also learned a lesson to shun the outside noise when things are not going smooth. “It was just the motivation I needed to just keep being me,” Green added.
It is quite incredible to keep learning about the knowledge Kobe Bryant instilled into other players. He left a greater impact than anybody else who played in the league, and that’s why he’ll remain as one of the greatest.
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