Kobe Bryant is remembered for many things, but there are tons of stories about his final chapters in the league. Now, a 12-year veteran and two-time NBA champion has come forward with his own story, including Bryant putting up to $10 million at risk for a small favor.

“Everyone knows him with Nike,” former San Antonio Spurs big man Matt Bonner explained on the Redhead Sports Pod. “But before he was with Nike, he was briefly with Adidas. And they had a shoe called the Crazy 8… And this is the shoe I was wearing all these years later. I’m like, man, it would be so cool if Kobe would sign these shoes. It’s his shoe. It’s like a full circle moment.”

This story took place in 2016, the final season for both Bryant and Bonner, who were previously connected by nicknames. Bonner, also known as the Red Mamba, was given his nickname on a Twitter conversation when a fan suggested that Brian Scalabrine, the White Mamba, leading to Bryant coining the ‘Red Mamba’ nickname for Bonner

Bonner explained that he sent the ball boy to Bryant’s locker room with his pair of Crazy 8s, telling him to get it signed while the center did his pre-game shooting routine. What Bryant did caught him by surprise.

“He said he can only sign Nike shoes,” Bonner was told by the ball-boy. “He has an exclusive contract. He’s not allowed to sign any other type of shoe, but he’s going to make an exception for you just this once. Because he respects you. This is his old shoe… He wrote, ‘From one Mamba to another, Kobe Bryant,” and signed both shoes.”

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That exception, as some might realize, was no small deal.

Inside $10 Million Exception Kobe Bryant Made For Matt Bonner

After he entered the league in 1996 with a six-year, $48 million Adidas deal, which launched the Crazy 8, Kobe Bryant parted ways with the brand in 2002. The next year, he signed an exclusive deal with Nike that reportedly paid him roughly $10 million per year, and helped the Los Angeles Lakers guard build one of the most iconic sneaker lines in basketball history.

Endorsement contracts at that level usually come with strict exclusivity clauses, with athletes being generally restricted from promoting, endorsing, or even publicly interacting with rival brands. Signing an opposing company’s shoe could definitely raise contractual questions.

Still, as Bonner said, Bryant went through with it. The message was a nod to their shared history, something both players valued. After Bryant gave Bonner the Red Mamba nickname, the Spurs center wholeheartedly embraced it, leading to a sponsorship deal with Texas-based soda company Big Red.

“I wonder does he even remember…is he even aware?” Bonner said before a game against the Lakers in the 2015-16 season. “He’s so great and famous, that he may not even know how big it was for me. He might not even remember tweeting it. But for me and for everyone in my lowly circles, it was a big deal.”

Clearly, that gesture is still being recognized.