Few NBA players could match Kobe Bryant’s work ethic. Injury days? They barely fazed him. Kobe was never one to let anything get in his way of becoming the best. Nike’s Nick Young, who spent Kobe’s final three seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers, saw this firsthand. He experienced the intensity of the Mamba Mentality, even when Bryant’s body was less than cooperative.

During an appearance on the ‘Gil’s Arena’ podcast, Young reflected on those days with Bryant. When asked about Kobe’s practice habits in the later stages of his career, Young painted a picture of dedication that was unwavering. “The first year when he came back from injury, he showed up to training camp, trying to be, you know, the first person in the gym,” Young shared. According to him, remarkably, Kobe then completed a grueling run, yet he was always the first in line, setting the tone for everyone else.

But the story takes a humorous turn on the second day of training camp. As Young recalled, Kobe struggled because of his lingering ankle injury. “He was like, ‘Nick, I’m good, I’m telling you that old sh** caught up to me,’” Young laughed, adding that Bryant admitted, “My ankle ain’t right today, y’all got it.” Even when he couldn’t train properly, Kobe was still at the training table, getting work done, embodying the spirit of perseverance.

Kobe’s tragic passing in a helicopter crash in 2020 didn’t just take away an NBA legend; it left behind the enduring legacy of the Mamba Mentality. Despite not having the natural gifts of some of his peers, the 5× NBA champ through sheer willpower earned his place as the Lakers’ GOAT—an accolade even Magic Johnson acknowledges.

In a training session with young athletes, Bryant himself defined the Mamba Mentality as “a constant quest to try to be better today than you were yesterday.” It’s a mindset that Nick Young got a firsthand taste of.

Kobe Bryant once put Young’s broken thumb to test!

During the 2013 to 2016 seasons, Kobe Bryant and Nick Young shared the court as teammates. It was a challenging period for the Lakers, who were far from their former glory. Yet Bryant’s mentality never wavered. His “no excuses” attitude set the tone for every practice, expecting nothing less than 100% effort from everyone around him. Young, who was nursing a hand injury at the time, found himself in Kobe’s crosshairs. “He didn’t believe I was hurt or something,” Young recalled, sharing that Bryant thought he was just trying to skip out on practice.

As a result, Young’s practice turned into a painful ordeal. Kobe, convinced that Young was faking his injury, decided to put him to the test. “You faking, man, you better start practicing,” Bryant told him. What followed was a relentless barrage of passes thrown with extra force. “The whole practice, he was throwing me the ball extra hard…I was catching it with one hand like, c’mon man, damn, I told you my thumb hurt,” Young shared, vividly recalling the intensity of that session.

Finally, the team’s trainer had to step in, explaining to Kobe that Young wasn’t faking it—he actually broke his thumb. Only then did Kobe back down, later apologizing for his behavior. But that moment, intense as it was, highlighted the essence of Bryant’s Mamba Mentality—no excuses, no mercy, just the relentless pursuit of excellence.

Stay tuned for more such updates and join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.