“My Fondest Moment When It Came to Kobe Bryant…”: Allen Iverson Picked 2008 Incident as Favorite Black Mamba Moment

It didn’t take much to motivate to obliterate an opposing defense. However, the made the fatal error of talking trash to the legend while he was having a quiet game and instantly regretted it. In an interview with Complex Magazine, Hall of Famer recalled being on the receiving end of a Kobe Bryant masterclass.

Advertisement In Game 2 of the first round playoff series between the Lakers and the Nuggets, Bryant got off to a hot start, scoring 20 points in the first two quarters. However, in the next two, he only scored five points each. Nuggets star Kenyon Martin started chirping at the Lakers superstar during his cold spell.

Iverson revealed: Advertisement Martin’s trash talk was all Bryant needed. He scored 19 points in a stretch that spanned a little over four minutes in the fourth quarter to set up a comfortable Lakers win. He finished the game with 49 points, ten assists, and four rebounds, leading the Lakers to a 122 107 win.

Iverson spoke about the experience of watching Bryant humiliate the Nuggets, saying: Loading embed tweet https://twitter.com/el_jefe562/status/1742229864571371714?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw Iverson had a terrific outing, too, scoring 31 points and dishing six assists. However, Bryant’s fourth quarter explosion was too much for the former MVP and his team to overcome.

Advertisement Even back then, it was common knowledge that Kobe Bryant shared Michael Jordan’s mentality. So really, by talking smack to him, Kenyon Martin only signed his own, and the Denver Nuggets’ death warrants. After all, Kobe was never going to let that type of behavior slide. The Lakers swept the Nuggets 4 0 and reached the NBA Finals, where they lost in six games to the .

Bryant fed off the frustration of that setback and led the Lakers to two straight NBA titles in the subsequent two years. Allen Iverson’s affection for Kobe Bryant Allen Iverson and Kobe Bryant’s on court rivalry was one sided. The two met twice in the playoffs, and the Lakers superstar won both series with a combined record of 8 1.

However, Iverson has never held a grudge against Bryant. He has advocated for him to be in the GOAT debate. In an interview with Rachel Nichols for the Showtime series Headliners, Iverson claimed Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant were the two best players in NBA history. He said: Loading embed tweet https://twitter.com/Rachel__Nichols/status/1740442449464660186?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw Iverson’s adulation for Bryant is understandable.

He saw the Lakers superstar operate firsthand in his prime and win five championships in 11 years. The respect was mutual. When Iverson earned his Hall of Fame nod in 2016, Bryant was asked about his impact. The Lakers star revealed how Iverson’s 41 point performance against him made him obsess about his defensive skills.

He said: The following season, Bryant earned his first All Defensive first team nod. He earned 12 All Defensive nods during his career due to the one time Iverson destroyed him. The duo did a lot of heavy lifting for their respective teams in their primes. At times, they single handedly dragged their rosters to the playoffs.

Both were revered for their ability to take over a game and lead their teams to victories. Iverson and Bryant are two of the most skilled players in NBA history, and it’s endearing to see the respect these competitors had for each other. Advertisement.