Kobe Bryant had a ton of talent when he was in high school, but his crazily strong work ethic set him apart from the competition. More than anybody else, Bryant put in the extra effort that enabled him to develop into the player we all knew and loved.
The reason why Bryant reportedly didn’t pass the ball to his teammates was because he didn’t have much respect for people who didn’t work as hard as him. He was, nevertheless, impressed by a few opponents who had a strong work ethic.
Bryant said : “I think you see a lot of players that are playing today have that work ethic,” “Kyrie (Irving), James (Harden), Russell (Westbrook), these guys really get in the gym and spend a lot of time in there. KD (Kevin Durant), LeBron (James) obviously.
“They do over a period of time,” “For young players out there for example, it’s not good enough to go out there and work really really hard for like two months, like really really hard. It’s more important to work really hard over the course of 10 years and be consistent about that and you have players that are out there today that have certainly done that.”
The players Kobe named there have undoubtedly worked really hard for a very long time, as he stated as the key to success. Because they put in the hard work, players like Kyrie Irving, James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, and LeBron James have been so great for so long.
Kobe Bryant’s work ethic was praised by Bryon Scott and Jerry West
The Charlotte Hornets selected Kobe with the 13th overall pick in the 1996 NBA Draught, and he was later moved to the Los Angeles Lakers. Bryon Scott arrived and could see right away that this teenager was going to be different because of his extraordinary work ethic.
Even Jerry West, who had made the risky decision to bring Kobe to the Lakers, was astounded by the teenager. West, who has been associated with the league in some capacity since the 1960s, claimed that Bryant’s work ethic was unmatched. Over the course of 20 seasons, Kobe averaged 25.0 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 1.4 steals, and 0.5 blocks a game. His incredible career was the result of a combination of talent and work ethic. In order to solidify his place among the all-time greats, he also collected five championships, two MVP awards from the Finals, and an MVP.