![\"Baron](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/wgy3yyer35xb7nxz.jpg\")
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LOS ANGELES – Gone but never forgotten, the legacy of Kobe Bryant<\/a> lives on through those he inspired.<\/p>\n While they may have been rivals on the court, Baron Davis said he has nothing but respect and fond memories of the late NBA superstar.<\/p>\n Baron Davis says Kobe Bryant was \u2018built different\u2019 <\/p>\n What they’re saying:<\/p>\n Bryant\u2019s name remains synonymous with Los Angeles basketball. With LA set to host NBA All-Star weekend for the seventh time, Davis reflected on his favorite Bryant memory while discussing the upcoming event on GDLA+.<\/p>\n For Davis, it was their first meeting that left the biggest impression.<\/p>\n “My favorite memory is when I first met him,” Davis said.<\/p>\n Davis recalled being invited to Bryant\u2019s home during his time at UCLA. While touring the house, the two entered a room that spoke volumes about Bryant\u2019s dedication to the game.<\/p>\n “I had never seen somebody with so much tape,” Davis said. “I said, \u2018Hey, if you ever want to hang out \u2014 I know we\u2019re the same age. If you ever want to get out, we\u2019re right around the corner. You can hang with us.\u2019 And he was like, \u2018Nah.\u2019”<\/p>\n Davis said Bryant was instead focused on studying film.<\/p>\n Kobe Bryant #24 of the Los Angeles Lakers drives against Baron Davis #1 of the Los Angeles Clippers during a preseason game at Staples Center on October 18, 2009, in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Lisa Blumenfeld\/Getty Images) (Getty Images)<\/p>\n “I\u2019m sitting there watching this tape, and I\u2019m like, OK, this guy\u2019s built super different,” he said.<\/p>\n Davis played two seasons at UCLA before entering the NBA Draft in 1999, while Bryant entered the NBA Draft after graduating from high school in 1996 at just 17 years old.<\/p>\n Though Bryant was about a year older, Davis said it was clear early on that Bryant operated on another level.<\/p>\n “You see the difference, and you know a kid who was just so hyper-focused,” Davis said. “That was his focus \u2014 to be the greatest player ever. I always go back to those tapes because he had a room full of tape.”<\/p>\n Dig deeper:<\/p>\n Davis and Bryant both left impressions on the league during their playing careers.<\/p>\n SUGGESTED: Baron Davis says LA Is ready to shine as NBA All-Star Weekend approaches<\/a><\/p>\n Davis, a two-time NBA All-Star, had a 13-year career and played for numerous teams, notably the LA Clippers and Golden State Warriors. Bryant, whose relentless work ethic was described as the “Mamba Mentality,” spent his entire 21-year career with the Men in Purple and Gold. Among his many accolades, Bryant was an 18-time All-Star.<\/p>\n The Source: Former NBA All-Star Baron Davis shared the story during an appearance on GDLA+ on Thursday, Jan. 29 while discussing NBA All-Star weekend in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n NBA<\/a>Kobe Bryant<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"LOS ANGELES – Gone but never forgotten, the legacy of Kobe Bryant lives on through those he inspired.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":158390,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[17959,48,52,51,47,50,49,129,592,127],"class_list":{"0":"post-158389","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-los-angeles","8":"tag-kobe-bryant","9":"tag-la","10":"tag-la-headlines","11":"tag-la-news","12":"tag-los-angeles","13":"tag-los-angeles-headlines","14":"tag-los-angeles-news","15":"tag-nba","16":"tag-people","17":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158389","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=158389"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158389\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/158390"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=158389"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=158389"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=158389"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/gettyimages-91985996.jpg\")
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