Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan is a special relationship that has grown over the years in the NBA. Among the stories that can be told, a new anecdote broke out: the trash-talking of MJ on the Black Mamba while he was still on the floor.
Over the years, Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan have developed a real relationship on and off the court. At the same time, when we know the competitiveness of the two men and their mental, we say that they had everything to get along. During the ceremony for Kobe and Gianna in Los Angeles, MJ had rightly described the Black Mamba as « his little brother », proof of the respect present between the two men.
That respect was there, no doubt. When Jordan came out of his second retirement to play for the Wizards, he had good duels with Kobe. The latter had even dropped 55 points against him during their last confrontation, on March 28, 2003 at the Staples Center.
And anecdotes, there are some. As for example the one where Kobe did not hesitate to run headlong on MJ to attack the open court. The result? The former glory of the Bulls ended up on the floor with the offensive foul in bonus, to the great dismay of the Mamba, before the two men share a beautiful moment of complicity :
🐐 x 🐍
Brothers. (via @Lakers) pic.twitter.com/7vAWqm7SJm
— ESPN (@espn) March 31, 2020
As much to say that Kobe was not really agree with this whistle, even if he ended up laughing, while raising Jordan. It was then that « His Airness » slipped a little word in his opponent’s ear. What exactly? No one knew at the time, but the mystery is no longer a mystery.
On Twitter and present courtside at the scene, actor John Cusack recounted what Jordan said to Kobe as he got up:
Everyone stepped aside for Kobe to get his 1-vs-1 against MJ.
Jordan takes the offensive foul, wins the duel, they take a little break and look at each other wryly. MJ says, « The whole damn room knew you weren’t going to pass! » and they both burst out laughing. »
Everyone cleared out – so Kobe could have MJ one on one -MJ took the charge / won the battle – they paused a beat , looking at each other wryly –
“ well the whole fucking building knew you weren’t gonna pass “mj said and they both burst out laughing ..:) pic.twitter.com/pqdRdk8KxP— John Cusack (@johncusack) March 29, 2020
Even on the ground, Jordan knew how to trash-talk his opponents. And as he reached the twilight of his career and the Mamba in full bonus dominated him during their confrontations, His Airness savored this small victory at its true value.
