Kobe's former teammate also remembered early signals that Bryant would be a workaholic.
When Kobe Bryant came into the league, Nick Van Exel was a fourth year veteran in the midst of a 13 year NBA career. 20 years later, Bryant is now in the midst of a season long farewell tour celebrating his Hall of Fame career, and Van Exel says that while he wouldn't have predicted this level of greatness from Kobe so early, there were signs that his constant drive to improve would make him a special player.
"I'm sure people around here have seen him grind, grind, grind, and the kid was like that when he came into the league, his work ethic, his drive, it was unbelievable," said Van Exel, now head coach of the Texas Legends in the NBA D-League.