Prior to Wednesday's tilt with the Memphis Grizzlies, Kobe Bryant stopped to dish about trash talk, playing time and the Gasol brothers with Mike Trudell on Time Warner Cable SportsNet. Below is a full transcription:
Mike Trudell: Kevin Garnett named the top three trash talkers of his career. You guys had a similar career path. He said Michael Jordan, Gary Payton and Hakeem Olajuwon, which was kind of a surprise third one for me. Who are your top three trash talkers?
Bryant: I didn’t really hear Michael talk too much trash. I’ve heard stories about him. From my experience: Gary Payton, KG, actually, and who would be that third one? … It’s tough to think off the top of my head. Reggie Miller, maybe. I don’t know. Scottie (Pippen) talked a lot of trash, too.
MT: So MJ never really talked to you then?
Bryant: No, we never really trashed talked each other.
MT: I talked to Byron Scott about this yesterday, your minutes, and it’s an ongoing dialogue with you. Your legs have felt a little heavy, he said, in certain second halves. Obviously you’re playing a lot of them. What’s is that process for you when you try to figure out: “OK, difference between 35, 32 and 30.” How is that going to go on as the season continues?
Bryant: Well, I’m trying to figure out the challenge. That’ my job: to figure it out and try to be ready for whatever the coach needs. Even he needs me to play 36, I should be able to do that. I’ve been very disappointed with myself in terms of not being able to finish games the way I know I can. So instead of leaning on the easy way out, which is 19 years (in the NBA) and 36 years old, I try to figure out the solutions of strength and conditioning recovery and just try to do my part.
MT: You’ve been maximizing that for years now. Your nutrition, you changed to try to find any of that last, little edge. You don’t want to give into that minute limit now. You think you still can get to that point.
Bryant: Yeah, obviously that’s the easy route to go — to cut the minutes. And I’m actually for it if that’s something (Byron Scott) wants to do. But as a player, my responsibility is to be ready for whatever the coach decides (or) needs. Whatever he wants us to be able to do: If he wants me to play 40 minutes, then it’s my responsibility to be ready to be able to do that. So I want to just make sure I’m ready enough to give him as many options as possible.
MT: Is that dialogue any different just given the relationship that you guys have going back to 1996 when he was your teammate and kind of a guy that mentored you in a lot of ways?
Bryant: Yeah, we just converse just like we always have. It’s a very easy conversation. Part of the way I prepare comes from the things he taught me: time management, how to take care of your body, it’s an around-the-clock thing. When I got here, he was 36 actually, and he was still supremely conditioned. So a lot of the things I do now, I learned from him.
MT: The Grizzlies come in playing great basketball. Mac Gasol, you gotta say, is probably up there in the MVP consideration just for how well he’s playing on both ends. You have such a great relationship with Pau. What similarities do you see and differences in there games? And obviously they have to be the best brother combo ever at this point, right?
Bryant: They play the same way, except Marc’s heavier. Marc plays with a lot of power. Pau’s more agile. But the skillset is essentially the same: the way they shoot, turn right shoulder, turn left shoulder, jump hook, left hand, right hand, incredible passes. So he’s a phenomenal player.
MT: What do you do at home for Thanksgiving? What does your wife do? What do the girls do?
Bryant: Cook a big feast. I have to watch what I eat a little bit. Don’t wanna come back playing the five on Friday. But we just kind of hang out and watch this (Philadelphia) Eagles game.
MT: Wait, so do you cook?
Bryant: Don’t want to burn the house down now, do you? But no, I’ll do quite a bit of eating. … No, I can cook a little bit. I’ll help out a little bit.