Ask anyone in the NBA community and they’ll tell you that Kobe Bryant is one of the greatest ever to play the game. The former Laker spent 20 years in the league as he dominated his opponents on a regular basis. All in all, the man won five titles for the Lakers and remains the city’s hero even today.

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As Kobe embodied the ‘Mamba Mentality’ to overcome his obstacles, he, in turn, inspired several people all over the world. These include many of today’s NBA stars, one of which is DeMar DeRozan. In fact, DeRozan has employed much of Kobe’s playing style too. Moreover, the two even had a relationship that was forged years before DeRozan arrived in the NBA. DeRozan explained this in a recent interview.

DeMar DeRozan on Kobe Bryant

While shopping for sneakers with Joe La Puma, DeRozan spoke about his relationship with the ‘Mamba’ and explained how it began years before he played in the NBA. He started off by stating how his relationship with Kobe was forged when the ‘Mamba’ gave him a pair of his signature shoes.

“I think it started when I was 15-16. And by the time I think the Kobe 1s came out, it was my senior year in high school. So about ’07-’08, he gave me the first pair, and it kinda started from there,” said DeRozan.

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Thereafter, DeRozan spoke about how his relationship with Kobe carried over to his college career at USC and finally, to the NBA.

“When I went to college, by that time, the relationship that I had with him, he sponsored us and we had our own special made SC Kobes,” said DeRozan.

“That was just the relationship that we had. It just carried over till I was in the league. I think that’s why I held down the brand for so long to this day,” he added.

In Conclusion

It is quite evident that DeRozan’s relationship with Kobe was a close one. Many NBA stars have their own set of signature shoes. However, wearing your idol’s signature shoes and playing against him in the league must have been special for DeRozan.

Like Kobe, DeRozan too will aim to perform at a consistently high level for the Bulls. As the season winds down, he will aim to remain healthy and perform for his team when the playoffs arrive.

It’s been a turnaround season for Chicago with DeRozan being a major factor. Hopefully, we can see the NBA star win a title while wearing Kobe’s shoes. It would then be a fairytale ending to a successful season for DeRozan.