Known for his icy demeanor on the court, Kobe Bryant was a force to be reckoned with. His intense focus and competitive display often led to a reputation as a demanding teammate. Moreover, Darius Johnson-Odom, who was a rookie at the time with the Los Angeles Lakers, was one of the players who had experienced Bryant’s icy attitude. But, how?

Straight out of college, Johnson-Odom had joined the Lakers as a rookie in 2012. Having no experience with how the team worked and what the attitudes of his teammates were, the young point guard only had one request for the 5x champion. “Coming in, trying to play one-on-one, he’s like, ‘You ain’t ready’. He just waived me off,” said the former NBA player in the latest interview with Jefe Island.

The former NBA player was always the first to enter the court for practice but remained as amazed as every time he entered the court, he would see Bryant already sweating from his session. Since no other player went to the practice facility so early, he would ask the All-Star to have a 1v1 match with him and was always let down as Bryant thought that the 23-year-old at that time was not ready to face him. “I tried to play him one-on-one every morning. I saw him because I had to be like the first one to the gym,” said Johnson-Odom in the interview with Jefe Island.

Johnson-Odom’s stint with the Lakers was however short-lived. After playing only four games with the Lakers NBA team, he was shifted to the Lakers G league team, South Bay Lakers which at the time was known as the Los Angeles D-Fenders. He showed some progress on the G League team, averaging 21 points per game, but unfortunately, he was waived off by the Lakers in 2013. Even though he didn’t get the desired attitude from his idol in the NBA, he did get some valuable lessons from him.

Lessons given by Kobe Bryant to Darius Johnson-Odom

Kobe Bryant, even though he was hard on the younger athletes, at the same time had given many valuable lessons as well. For Johnson-Odom, the Black Mamba was a mentor, a role model, and a relentless competitor, and in his latest interview, he talked about one of the valuable lessons that he has got from him.

The 34-year-old recalled, that one of his teammates in the Lakers, center Jordan Hill, who was known for his physicality and athleticism had one time become physical with him. At that time, Johnson-Odom had started yelling at him. Upon seeing this, Bryant had given a valuable lesson to Johnson-Odom. He had advised the point guard not to get away with his emotions or else that would be a problem for his career. This wasn’t the only advice given by the legendary Lakers player to the point guard. 

In a previous interview, Johnson-Odom had revealed that he was scolded by Bryant for not being punctual and had a one-on-one conversation with him to make him understand how important it is to be punctual to become successful. Bryant’s lessons were invaluable to Odom, and they continue to shape his approach to the game.

Stay tuned for more such updates and join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.