Kobe Bryant at a publicity event as his career was starting to take off.
Foto:
Allsport UK / Getty Images
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In this first death anniversary of Kobe Bryant, an unpublished video has emerged thanks to an article in the Los Angeles Times: Kobe practicing at the age of 17 in a Los Angeles Clippers shirt.
The date was June 22, 1996, at the now defunct Sports Arena in Los Angeles, where the LAFC’s Banc of California stadium now stands. There were four days to go before the NBA Draft and the Clippers didn’t know who to pick with the 7th. global selection.
The video (see below) was recorded by Rex Kalamian, then the Los Angeles team’s video assistant, and in it Kobe is seen showing his explosiveness and tenacity by making uninterrupted short shots under the basket with one hand and then the other.
Although the young player, wearing blue shorts and a gray shirt with the Clippers logo on the chest, missed a few shots, the sequence was impressive, ending with a dunk. It was his warm-up for the session.
Former Clippers assistant Rex Kalamian handled many video duties with the team in 1996 when Kobe Bryant worked out before the NBA draft. Here’s exclusive footage.
Story by @AndrewGreif: https://t.co/WTorc1RXxV pic.twitter.com/tRmm1Q3AUt
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) January 25, 2021
“This video, I knew I was going to want to see it again one day”, the Los Angeles Times Kalamian, noting that it was recorded on VHS cassette and that in those days it was normal to record over already used videos. Not this time. “I kept it separately in a box for a long time.”
The Clippers ended up picking center Lorenzen Wright, while Kobe was taken by Charlotte with the 13th. selection, shortly before being traded to the Lakers. The rest is history.
Kalamian, who is now an assistant coach for the Sacramento Kings, revealed that long after making the video he told Bryant about him and sent him a copy on CD. AND the Lakers star gave him signed shoes in exchange to give them to your child.
It is not known if Kobe Bryant saw the fascinating video.
READ MORE:
“It still doesn’t seem real”: Vanessa Bryant’s emotional message one year after the tragedy
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