During a major interview delivered to NBA.com, Ray Allen spoke of the small rivalry maintained during his career with the late Kobe Bryant, who died two years ago to the day. This began with their first clashes in the NBA, culminating in the NBA Finals of 2008 and 2010 during which each was able to win a champion’s ring.
Always motivated by challenges, Kobe Bryant had listed Ray Allen among the players he wanted to dominate, simply because of his place in the 1996 Draft, one of the most prestigious in NBA history.
“Kobe and I were drafted together in 1996. He wanted to prove he was going to be a great player. We teased each other a bit. Every time we played against each other, we both wanted to outdo each other. I think he knew that I had been selected before him (in fifth place, while Kobe Bryant had been chosen in 13th place). He wanted to prove that he was better and was going to have a bigger impact than me. I wanted to go after him and prove that what happened in the Draft happened because it was supposed to happen. We each had success on our own. It was epic to face each other in the 2008 and 2010 finals, playing for the two most legendary franchises. It was a great show. ».
“I wish I could sit down, laugh at certain things and that we were brothers in arms”
However, time has done its work and Ray Allen had held no grudge against Kobe Bryant. The former rear even imagined what their relationship could have been like afterwards. But that was without counting on the sudden death of Kobe Bryant on January 26, 2020.
“I was very sad because I had the feeling that we could have other relationships in the future. Being oldies, talking about the past, joking and building a relationship. We had spent so much time jumping at each other’s throats… He was trying to hurt what I was trying to do, and I was trying to hurt him. But why have animosity towards someone at the end of your career, just because they were paid to do what you are paid to do? It’s just a game. I would have liked to be able to sit down, laugh at certain things and that we were brothers in arms”.
Ray Allen remembers the first feelings that invaded him when he learned of the death of Kobe Bryant and he keeps this regret of not having been able to bury the hatchet with his former best enemy.
“I was scheduled to attend a golf event in Hawaii and while I was in the air the crash happened an hour into my flight. So much so that when I landed in Hawaii, I was told about it upon receipt of baggage. I couldn’t believe it. I had to sit down and think about it. I sympathized with his family, of course. And I thought of all the things we had been through”, he continued. “I felt bad because we didn’t have a chance to make amends. Not that we had bad will. I wish I could have laughed and joked and smoked cigars, but we never had that opportunity”.
