Four-time NBA champion Draymond Green is no stranger to playing against legends, as he has storied battles with the likes of LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and more. But on a recent podcast episode of “Why Is Draymond Green Talking About Football?” with Jordan Schultz, he spoke candidly about his first time playing against Kobe and how he felt starstruck watching the Lakers legend in warmups.
Draymond was a rookie during this first encounter, and he made sure to clarify the differences between where he is now as a veteran versus the rookie’s plight in the NBA.
Draymond Green Admired Kobe Bryant’s Work Ethic
“As rookies you get like the first time slot, so for a 7:00 game, I would have to start shooting around 3:30. To put it into perspective for you how early that is, I shoot at 6:10 for a 7:00 game.”
Rewinding the clock to Draymond Green’s rookie year — when he shut down his own pregame workout to watch Kobe Bryant in awe… 🐍🤯
But did Dray introduce himself to Bean once he finished up? pic.twitter.com/wAhAIZ7QLB
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) February 12, 2025
As Green continued sharing his story, he made sure to note that Kobe was not playing in this preseason game, which meant the Lakers legend would come out a little earlier to do his workout, which left Green enthralled.
“But Kobe, we were playing a preseason game, and he wasn’t playing in it, so he came off super early and did a full workout. I watched the whole workout like 40 minutes just sitting there.”
One thing that many players have mentioned over the years is that they respected Kobe’s work ethic. His “Mamba Mentality” seemed to motivate many players and inspire a generation of future NBA stars. For Draymond, watching Kobe up close left him in amazement, a testament to the Black Mamba’s skill and persistence, even in workouts.
“Before I knew it, I, you know, you go back whether you need to get your ankles or something, whatever. Like before, I had missed all my table time, everything. I was just watching Kobe. And then I watched him walk all the way up to the locker room, walk all the way down the court, do his whole workout, I watched him walk all the way back, I traced him, alright he’s gone, I’m going to go ahead now.”
Green Didn’t Introduce Himself to Bryant
For a rookie that’s captivated by a player in workouts, you might take the chance to go up and introduce yourself and show respect to the player you’re watching. For Green, he felt his status as a rookie did not allow him to make that introduction. When asked by Schultz if he went up to introduce himself, Green was honest.
“F*** no, no rookie going to introduce yourself to Kobe.”
While Green did not take the opportunity to introduce himself to Bryant then, he would make his presence known in the following years, as Green and Bryant had several battles, with Green earning Bryant’s respect.
