Playing one-on-one with Kobe Bryant was a hooper’s dream while growing up, but that quickly turned into a nightmare for Bow Wow, who got shut out 10-0 when facing the Mamba Mentality.
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Bow Wow joined Club Shay Shay for an interview on Thursday (April 30), during which he reflected on having the chance to play Bryant one-on-one back in 2011 when Bow pulled up to the Lakers superstar’s day camp.
As far as the stakes, Bow had to pay $1,000 in cash if he lost, but if he could’ve just scored a single bucket on Bryant, the Hall of Famer would’ve gifted the Like Mike star a pair of floor seats to every home game for an entire season.
“He took it for real. I left that gym and I said, ‘I will never play in the NBA, nor do I want to,’” Bow said before being pressed by Shannon Sharpe about how many points he scored. “None! He smothered me. He had his thumb in my waist. He was hand-checking.”
Bow continued: “He was telling me, ‘You’re gonna go wherever the f–k I want you to go.’ … What was so dope about the one-on-one was people got to see Kobe in a light that they never got to see Kobe in. You hear about the Mamba Mentality, but it’s tough to hear on TV. You hear ’em in the one-on-one … He talking to me crazy like I’m not Bow.”
Even though it’s been 14 years, Bow Wow still recalls the one chance he had to make an open jump shot, but Bryant’s 6’6″ frame closed quickly, and the glance at a clean basketball was gone within seconds. “By the time I raised up, it was no time. The way he closed out, that 6’6″ turned into 7’1,” he said.
Bryant ended up dishing out the $1,000 to his campers, and even with the loss, Bow has a memory he’ll cherish for a lifetime.
“That right there is like a bucket list [goal],” Bow Wow said. “Every kid would love to play Kobe Bryant one-on-one. And then for [his death] to tragically happen, that’s something I’m going to hold dearly to my heart.”
Bryant, his daughter Gigi and seven others were killed in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26, 2020. Bow Wow paid tribute to Kobe shortly after his death by posting a photo with his own daughter along with the hashtag “Girl Dad,” which went viral as Bryant was a father to four girls himself.
Watch the full interview and one-on-one game with Bow Wow below.
