Just before his death, the player to whom Kobe Bryant erased his debts

Sometimes tyrannical towards his teammates, supposedly not very present for his family, Kobe Bryant has nevertheless proven that he has a big heart on several occasions. A former Lakers knows something about it, since the Mamba has made his debt disappear!

Like his hero Michael Jordan, his practices in training and with his partners were clearly not unanimous during his career. Nevertheless, Kobe Bryant not only obtained results thanks to them, but also kept an excellent image in the minds of the players with whom he was able to evolve. Because despite his personality as a ruthless leader, he knew how to make himself appreciated by them.

A clever middle ground that not only allowed him to accumulate titles and awards along his career, but also… money. Indeed, the mythical rear of the Lakers owes in large part his some 330 million dollars in earnings in the NBA to his expertise in winning his team. A sum he might tend to use for crazy shopping… but also to help.

Kobe Bryant’s incredible gesture for Lamar Odom

Among Kobe’s very close former teammates was Lamar Odom, with whom he won two titles in 2009 and 2010. In the podcast All The Smokethe latter recounts having also been able to count on the Mamba when it was at its lowest:

I was gambling, and I had an old debt that had gotten a little too big for my financial situation at the time. The noose was tightening.

When you’re in a bad situation like that, especially money-related, he’s not the one you want to call. But hey, I tapped into my strength, put my pride aside, and called him. First, he came after me, just the right amount. And he said to me, “Have your team call mine, and we’ll find a solution.” It was the penultimate time I spoke to him.

Without really stating it clearly here, Odom did indeed receive a big boost from Kobe, who after scolding him for his slippages, sent him the necessary sum. And do not believe that the latter was intended to be relatively minimal, and that the former 6th Man of the Year adds to it in his words. In another interview for Bootleg Kev, he reveals more details about this episode:

I told myself that I was going to have to call him, even though I knew I was going to get rotten. And after he rotted me, like, “What the hell are you doing LO?!” he told me to contact his team. He got me out of this hole. And I was really deep. A 6-digit number, yeah. And I had no one to call but Kobe Bryant. Probably the most stingy guy I know.

Father ultra-appreciated by his daughters, Kobe Bryant was also able to borrow this symbolic role with Lamar Odom. No wonder the former winger is busy expressing his eternal gratitude to him whenever he gets the chance.