Nick Piccone
Kobe Bryant’s last game in Philly was last night if you haven’t heard. The fans gave him a standing ovation and he seemed really appreciative of it. He pandered to us by wearing an Eagles shirt after the game, and he pandered to us by eating a cheesesteak before the game.
Bryant, who’s gotten a lot of criticism for being an attention whore, and rightfully so, decided to embark some wisdom on our own rookie, Jahlil Okafor, while he was in Philly. This clearly was before a second video of Okafor’s Boston rampage became public today, so these motivating words better have gone a long way. [NJ.com]
I talked to him a little bit on the court, briefly in the weight room and a little bit after the game,” Bryant said. “I wish him all the best. It’s important for him to stay focused and to continue to work on his game, and he’ll be just fine.”
“Everybody has a camera with a camera phone,” he said. “You pick up on mistakes a lot more now than you would in the past. Not to say some of the heroes that have played here before haven’t made those same mistakes, but it’s just now the content gets captured so quickly.”
“My phone line’s always open to have a conversation or to sit around and break bread and talk about basketball or talk about whatever,” Bryant said. “I’m pretty open about that.”
I don’t think Kobe would be a bad coach in the league eventually, but this might be his first big test if Okafor takes him up on his offer. He could definitely help Okafor through this mess, but it needs to happen soon. Very soon.