LeBron James is one of those fortunate players who played for a huge part of his career when Kobe Bryant was around. The two legends entered the NBA just seven years apart and became the defining forces of their time. They were opponents, they were teammates (the US Olympics team), and then they were brothers.

The admiration that LeBron James carries for the Black Mamba can not be put into words. Whenever he answers anything that involves Kobe, his face reflects the pain he carries to have lost his big brother so early. Bron no doubt cherishes all the time he spent with Kobe, but he also has some regrets.

The Lakers’ big guy certainly resents a fail in the plan

Kobe Bryant hung his jersey #24 in 2016 when he retired after a glorious career. Just two years later, the Lakers organization managed to sign another star in the name of LeBron James to fill in for Kobe. The Black Mamba certainly backed the move. 

Kobe wanted to sit with The Akron Hammer for lunch so that he could update the newcomer on the culture at the Los Angeles Lakers. This was a time when many people were raising doubts about Bron joining a new side so late in his career. That lunch meeting never took place due to the tight schedule both these stars had back then.

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The 3-time champion remembered that time and revealed, “Of course, you think there’s going to be time for us to get together and I understand that there are regrets in life, but I definitely wish I had that moment with him.” He further added, “I do remember when I decided to come here, he sent me a text right away and said, ‘Welcome, brother. Welcome to the family.’ That was a special moment because at the time, Laker faithful wasn’t [fully in on me]. A lot of people were saying, ‘Well, we might not want LeBron at this point in his career,’ and, ‘Is he right? Is he going to get us back [to the Finals]?’ So to hear from him and get his stamp of approval, it meant a lot. I don’t ever question myself, but when it’s coming from Kobe, it definitely meant a lot.”

LeBron James has more to look back on 

The two greats met as opponents 22 times in their career. LeBron took the upper hand on Kobe here with a 16-6 record. The closest they would come to face off against each other was in the 2009 NBA playoffs. But unfortunately, the Cavs lost to Orlando Magic and could not advance. Take a look at one of their face-offs below:

The regret of not sharing a meal together shall forever stay with The Akron Hammer as an “I wish” memory. However, the blessing for Bron would be in the fact that it was Kobe who welcomed him to the Lakers. And now, he has done Kobe proud by leading his franchise to the NBA Finals 2020.