It’s not often that players are able to face off with their idols, especially in their first ever NBA game, but that was the case for Portland Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic.
The big man, then with the Denver Nuggets, took the floor in his preseason opener against the Los Angeles Lakers and Kobe Bryant. Of course at that time, Kobe was entering the twilight of his career so many young players entering the league grew up watching him.
Still one of the most popular players internationally, it makes sense that Nurkic would idolize Bryant.