Kobe Bryant has just celebrated his 36th birthday last August 23. This means that the Black Mamba has already spent more than half of his life playing elite-level of basketball. While it was the Los Angeles star who should receive gifts and throw away parties, it is his fans who got the treat. On the same day that the five-time champions celebrated his special day, Bleacher Report's Kevin Ding let fans learn more about the Bryant's competitive fire and determination through an article entitled "Kobe Bryant Reveals Competitive Fire, Unique Kindness in Untold Stories."
With this article, it is safe to say that there's still a lot of things that people don't know about the future Hall of Fame awardee. Here are just some of the highlights of the article.
Back in the 2012 NBA All-Star Game in Orlando, Kobe surpassed Michael Jordan's 262 points in the all-time scoring list in ASG. However, that was overshadowed by one play that involved Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade. During a play in the third quarter, Wade hit Bryant hard that the latter's nose bled and got broken. There was no confrontation between the two. The Heat guard even explained that it was not intentional. However, according to Tim Grover, trainer for both the NBA guards, Kobe tried to see Wade after the game.
"Kobe wanted to see him face-to-face before he'd go to the hospital. It wasn't about vengeance or retaliation or settling the score. It was about the law and order of the jungle, two animals instinctively facing off, the lion king getting up on that rock so the rest of the jungle could see who was in charge. One direct, silent look that says, 'I still own this, motherf----r.'"
Another main highlight in the article is the revelation that Kobe Bryant reportedly sent Lebron text messages regarding the latter's hyped transfer from Cleveland to Miami Heat in 2010, the same year that Kobe and the Los Angeles Lakers won their second straight Larry O' Brien Trophy.
The text goes:
"Go ahead and get another MVP, if you want. And find the city you want to live in. But we're going to win the championship. Don't worry about it."
