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“I believe the best players to ever play this game, they never got bored.” - Giannis Antetokounmpo reflects on how Kobe Bryant inspired him

Giannis Antetokounmpo explains how Kobe Bryant's curiosity inspired him to be great.
Matthew Dugandzic|
© Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

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The late Kobe Bryant's determination to be great continues to inspire many athletes even to this day. He had a 20-year career dedicated to growth and learning, trying to get better every day. Bryant's work ethic is something many NBA players try to live up to, and Giannis Antetokounmpo is also one of them.

The Mamba Mentality

Kobe coined the term 'Mamba Mentality' as a way of life. The mentality was always pursuing a better version of yourself, irrespective of the domain. Bryant worked on polishing his skills every year and was one of the best students of the game. He went into the minutest details of every skill he wanted in his arsenal.

"Obviously he is one of the best players to ever play this game. I love his journey, how he came to the league, how he keep on getting better," Giannis said during a post-game interview in Abu Dhabi.

"How he was one of the best players in the game but he was always a kid, he was always curious to learn more."

Giannis enters every NBA season with something new in his repertoire, a testament to him following Bryant's footsteps.

Giannis' relationship with Kobe

Although Giannis and Kobe's time in the NBA overlapped for only three seasons, the Greek freak got the opportunity to interact with the legend on multiple occasions. In 2017, a year after retiring from the league, Kobe started challenging NBA players on Twitter – giving them a goal to reach.

Antetokounmpo decided not to wait for his turn and sent out a tweet tagging the five-time NBA champion, saying: "Still waiting for my challenge." Kobe obliged and challenged Giannis to win the MVP title.

"I believe the best players to ever play this game, they never got bored," Giannis recently said. "They were able to wake up and find a new challenge to kind of tune them in to be great, go out there and dominate even more. Go out there and create more moments, more art."

Antetokounmpo went on to win the MVP award for his stellar performance in the 2018-19 season. Bryant then congratulated the Milwaukee Bucks star and urged him to continue striving for greatness – by challenging him to win an NBA title.

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Matthew Dugandzic
MATTHEW DUGANDZIC

Matthew finished his bachelor's degree in Economics (Management) at the University of Split and got his master's degree in the same field at the University of Zadar. Whether it is playing the game as an undersized 6'3'' power forward or simply watching it, Matthew can't get enough of it. After all, he has been an avid NBA fan since the 2000s. But don't get him wrong, as Matthew still loves the old-school NBA and is a true student of the game. From on-court moments to off-court stuff, whether it's about the stars of modern-day basketball or legends of the game, Matthew covers every category of the NBA world and basketball in general, as long as it makes for an engaging and exciting story.