Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson have previously shared their experience of facing Kobe Bryant. Curry was “in awe”, Green recalled being ‘starstruck,’ and Thompson called him ‘his Michael Jordan’. Despite facing the Lakers legend who was not in his prime, the influence of Black Mamba never diminished. Another teammate and a crucial player from the Golden State team detailed his learnings from the Lakers legend.

Yes, it involves spying. “I have the same agent as Kobe Bryant, so I was always stealing, you know, tips. I had somebody watching Kobe, you know, stealing things, writing things down, giving it to me.“Andre Iguodala said on the Young Man and the Three podcast. The 19-year-old veteran added that Bryant’s attention to detail, even during the practice session, was admirable. Next, he detailed one of those lessons that he secretly added to his armor.

“Like, Kobe would dribble on the wall with his left hand in one angle for 20 minutes and then change the angle for another 20 minutes, and so on and so forth. So, I would steal that.” Let’s not forget that at the age of 16, Kobe Bryant realised the importance of stretching and relaxation. So, it’s obvious that his eye for detail before the workouts, too, would be precise. Iguodala would then try to implement that into his routine, gradually incorporating it into his game.

Which is why he was an important member of the Warriors dynasty that won 4 championships. In fact, Iggy also got the nod for the 2015 NBA Finals. Largely due to his lockdown defense on LeBron James. When Iguodala was in the game, James made only 38.1% of his shots, compared to 44% without Iguodala. This is how he stayed ahead of the curve.

“And so, I was always trying to identify who was the best at any particular thing, and then I would just try to implement that into my regimen and my schedule. And then, you know, as you get older, it’s not about how hard you work, it’s how smart you work.”

Kobe Bryant was also the one to notice the 4x Warriors champion’s defensive ability. Iggy previously said on Gil’s Arena, “The only reason I made the Olympic team in 2012 is because Kobe Bryant was like, ‘This is the best defender in the league. And I never made the All-Defensive First Team”. This was also due to their previous matchup in which Iguodala dominated.

Kobe Bryant warned Andre Iguodala before their battle

During his prime, everybody tried to stop the 5x NBA champion. Naturally, many of them failed, and some who got success called themselves ‘Kobe Stopper’. But that term and its meaning, Kobe never took that seriously. As it would end up scoring more points on so-called defenders. Although Andre  Iguodala never called himself ‘Kobe Stopper’ he still managed to limit the Black Mamba once during their matchup on November 11, 2005, when Iguodala was a second-year pro with the Philadelphia 76ers.

Kobe Bryant could only score 17 points; what was more shocking was his shooting on 7-of-27, which was too low in his prime. This is why Iggy called this his favorite defensive performance of his career. Again, everybody knows that the Lakers legend will keep his receipts and return the favor. Thanks to Phil Jackson, it became an unforgettable moment. Recalling the actions of the Zen Master, Andre said, “After the game, Phil Jackson said it was the best he’d seen someone defend Kobe.”

The battle becomes personal, and no points for guessing what happened next. In fact, Kobe even went as far as to leave a message for Iguodala in the Philadelphia locker room prior to the game.“Tell Andre 50 tonight,” Iguodala remembered being told. “You know how much he got — 48.” From that moment to sharing agents and being teammates on the 2012 Olympics team, the 4x NBA champion got the full Kobe experience.