It’s no secret that Kobe Bryant is and has always been a ballhog. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, per say, especially when you’re winning. But if the ball ended up in Kobe Bryant’s hands, especially in his younger days, chances are you weren’t going to touch the rock on that possession again.
In fact, Bryant’s former Los Angeles Lakers teammate Robert Horry says that Kobe Bryant bribed teammates to pass him the ball by offering up free Adidas gear.
Robert Horry said Kobe told teammates when Shaq was injured in 02-03 season that he'd give his teammates Adidas gear if he kept getting ball
— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) March 30, 2016
That totally sounds like something a 28-year-old Kobe Bryant would do.
But in the end, everybody was happy, right? Not so much because the Black Mamba never fulfilled his end of the obligation:
Horry said Kobe still hasn't given teammates gear. Kobe said he doesn't owe anything since he switched to Nike
— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) March 30, 2016
Despite that, the promise for free basketball gear seemed to work as Kobe averaged 5.4 more shots a game than Shaquille O’Neal during that season, which was by far the largest amount between the two at the time.
Also, pretty crazy to remember a time in which Bryant was sponsored by Adidas and not Nike.
