The late great Kobe Bryant is etched in our memories forever. Every athlete who has been around him has a Kobe story to tell. These range from being inspirational to an absolute horror story, if coming across him as an opponent. Recently an ex-NBA star unveiled his experience of facing the Black Mamba on court.

CJ Miles, during a recent podcast appearance, revealed what it was like going against the Los Angeles Lakers legend. Miles said that after receiving two fouls till halftime, Kobe was fuming and he had to advise his teammates to not discuss it too loudly.

Kobe Bryant had CJ Miles scared

Miles said that after receiving two fouls, Kobe was standing next to him during halftime. That is when the Mamba instincts kicked in and he said, “I got something for that shit.” The 36-year-old claimed that before halftime, Kobe was struggling a little, but Miles didn’t take any credit for it. He said that the 5x NBA champion wasn’t in his “groove.” After hearing Kobe’s comment, Miles said that he thought “He’s about to shoot the ball 60 times in 24 minutes.” The ex-NBA star said that he even had to urge his teammates to not celebrate Kobe being taken out of the game after the fouls.

Miles said that he asked his teammates to not talk about it till the game was over, and even then, they shouldn’t be “too loud” about it. He said, “I know what’s going on,” as he was the one in charge of guarding the Black Mamba. The 36-year-old also talked about Kobe’s ability in mental warfare and said that being around him was a phenomenal experience. Such stories are very common in NBA conversations as we have witnessed twenty years of excellence from the late legend.

What makes Kobe even more special is that he had two different versions of the same player in #8 and #24.

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CJ Miles chooses between Kobe Bryant’s #8 and #24

These are the two numbers that Kobe wore during his time with the Lakers. Both the jerseys are retired by the LA franchise, and both are equally brilliant. Of the five NBA titles he won during his career, the first three were with the #8. Then he debuted his #24 during the 2006-07 season and won back-to-back championships in 2009 and 2010 with it.

When asked for his pick between the two, Miles said that he couldn’t pick one because both represent greatness. “One was super athletic [#8] and… the other one just like he got so massively skilled,” he said. Kobe had said that the #24 “is a growth from [No. 8]” and was more of a leader than the younger one. Whichever your choice may be, he brought excellence of the highest standard to the court, so you can’t really go wrong.

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