Paul George shares touching tale from Kobe Bryant’s final Lakers game in Indiana

Although there are several worthy candidates, most fans would probably agree that there is no player more synonymous with the Los Angeles Lakers than the late franchise icon Kobe Bryant. Bryant spent two decades in the purple and gold, winning five championships with the Lakers, first as a sidekick to Shaquille O’Neal, and then as the main guy during the team’s resurgence during the late 2000’s.

While the team’s play diminished during Bryant’s final years in the league in the 2010’s, the shooting guard remained as popular as ever with fans around the world, which was evidenced by the outpouring of love he received during his final season, the 2015-16 campaign. Of course, Bryant had announced toward the beginning of that year that it would be his last, meaning every visiting city had ample time to prepare ceremonies and arrangements to give one of the game’s greatest players of all time his flowers.

One of the stops on that farewell tour was Indiana, where Bryant was slated to take on Paul George and the Pacers. Recently, George took to his own Podcast P with Paul George, presented by Wave Sports + Entertainment, to share his memories of that game.

“He had his certain destinations that he was going to go play and I was one of his guys,” said George, per Podcast P with Paul George on YouTube. “I had a relationship before. With Kobe prior to that game. Prior to that he had missed a couple games, but he let us know ahead of time, listen, Kobe’s going to play when he comes to Indiana, he wants to play against you. So I knew ahead of time going into that game, Kobe was going to suit up. I was hyped. I’m one of the ones that he wanted to suit up against for his last go around. Yeah, I knew it beforehand.”

George also broke down a special moment that he and the Lakers star shared that evening.

“Me and him. It was me and him in there for about five, 10 minutes…everybody was gone. Me and him chopped it up. I had to wait around and I take a minute. And I had to wait for him. He had to ice down. He had to do all this sh**.”

Bryant was a larger-than-life figure

During his legendary career with the Lakers, Kobe Bryant established himself as a celebrity among celebrities, a figure whom the best basketball players on planet Earth idolized themselves. Bryant’s propensity for hitting clutch contested jump shots, alongside his signature “Mamba Mentality” persona, made him an icon for an entire generation of players growing up, many of whom are now the current stars in the NBA today.

Bryant tragically passed away along with his daughter Gianna and several others four years ago in January 2020 in a Calabasas helicopter crash. It’s refreshing to see that his memory and legacy are living on through players like George and several of his counterparts, who apply the Lakers star’s work ethic and on-court skills to the game today.