Brandon Ingram knows the significance of his locker at STAPLES Center.
For so long, his spot was occupied by arguably the greatest player in franchise
history, Kobe Bryant. One day before the Lakers are set to retire Bryant’s
jersey numbers, Ingram reflected on sharing his space with a legend.
“Every day I go in the tunnel, I think about how blessed I am to be in this
position,” Ingram said at Sunday’s practice. “This guy spent 20 years in the
same position. It’s an honor to try be there, fill some shoes and just try to
come here and work every day.”
Brandon Ingram talks about Kobe Bryant and the aspects of his game that stood
out to him the most. pic.twitter.com/fsHdS9WLt4
At halftime of Monday’s game against Golden State, the Lakers will retire both
numbers that Bryant wore in his career: 8 and 24.
Twenty-year-old Ingram doesn’t remember much from Bryant’s days as No. 8 (other
than YouTube highlights), but the impact of his career wasn’t lost on the
Lakers’ young small forward.
“He took every game like it was his last,” Ingram said. “He took advantage of
any game or any aspect of the game. He wanted to master everything and was
definitely an inspiration of our generation and, of course, many generations
(before) me.”
On a personal level, Ingram said that Bryant’s main advice to him thus far in
his young career has been to bring “tenacity” on the defensive end.
Head coach Luke Walton — Bryant’s teammate for eight years and two
championships — remembers how Bryant had that ferocity on both sides of the
ball during his playing career.
“Especially in the fourth quarter, he wanted to guard the other team’s best
player,” Walton said. “He studied film on all their moves so that going into
games he knew what their go-tos were, what their tendencies were if there was
going to be a buzzer-beater.”
Luke Walton talks about meeting Kobe for the first time, and memories he has of
him as a teammate pic.twitter.com/pMChDgRRCg
Walton recalled how Bryant would usually be the first player to arrive for
practice, filling the gym with trash talk when his teammates arrived.
While he knows his team will need to make halftime adjustments during Monday’s
game against Golden State, he also wants the players to see the ceremony for a
Lakers legend.
“If you mention the Lakers, you think about Kobe,” Lonzo Ball said. “Like I
said, I’m glad he’s getting both jerseys retired. I think that’s fitting for
him. Hopefully we’ll put on a good show for him.”
Lonzo Ball talks about growing up watching Kobe Bryant, and the impact he had on
the league pic.twitter.com/sRASAMfN1W
Player: Lonzo Ball
Player: Brandon Ingram
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