As two of the biggest talents on the biggest brand in basketball history, the Lakers, Jerry West and Kobe Bryant were practically royalty within NBA circles.
West was the wily veteran, a man who had already captured basketball’s biggest prize, not to mention a host of other accomplishments, during his playing days. West had shared the court with Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain and many other Hall of Famers. He always looked at home in those contests, even when they ended in defeat: West remains the only player in league history to take home the Finals MVP award in a losing effort.
“The Logo” was a magician during his time in Tinseltown. His retirement in 1974 left a gaping hole in the Los Angeles lineup, as West was among the sport’s few momentous scorers. Just over 20 years after his departure, the franchise would finally find a worthy replacement in Bryant.
Here’s what you need to know about West, Bryant and the circumstances that brought them together.
The friendship between Jerry West and Kobe Bryant, explained
West and Bryant were as thick as thieves for a pair of men born 40 years apart in very different life situations. West vouched for Bryant from the beginning, witnessing his greatness firsthand while attending Bryant’s much-vaunted workout with the franchise before the 1996 NBA Draft.
West put Bryant through the gauntlet. The then 17-year-old was equipped with little more than his childhood basketball and a ruthless streak on the court. Tasked with facing basketball Hall of Famer Michael Cooper, former Defensive Player of the Year and eight-time All-Defensive team selection, Bryant had his work cut out for him.
“I thought he was going to go out and beat him up, to tell you the truth. That was my thought. I was like, okay, look, I don’t give a damn how old he is, I’m not going to let any damn guy do anything,” Cooper said. ESPN in 2021. “And boy, I came back to reality quickly.”
Bryant torched Cooper, delivering a clinic so impressive that footage of the crash has apparently disappeared. He left a big impression on West,
“He just had that factor,” West said. “LeBron James, Magic Johnson, people like that, they just have it. Kobe had it. You could see it. You could feel it.”
West moved heaven and earth to get the precocious young man. You probably already know the story: the Lakers sent Vlade Divac to the Hornets in exchange for Bryant’s draft rights.
The couple’s relationship only blossomed in the following years. West and his wife, Karen, kept an eye on Bryant during the beginning of her career, serving as “substitute“parents while he recovered as an adult.
That friendship flourished even as West grew older and grayer; It was West who convinced Black Mamba not to sign with him. Scissors and Grizzlies despite Bryant’s best wishes.
Even after Bryant’s tragic death in 2020, his influence on his mentor was scrawled on the walls of West’s West Virginia home. It makes sense why: It was also Bryant’s refuge.
“His influence in this house has always been here because he was in my house a lot,” West said. The New York Times in 2022. “Watching him grow, seeing this insatiable desire to be the best. When he gets to the top of the mountain, all of a sudden, he’s climbing another mountain. And then it’s all gone.”
