Jae Crowder remembers having some pregame words with Kobe Bryant his rookie year.
KB: "You ready young fella?"
JC: "You ready old head?"
Oh wow.
"And I should've never said that," Crowder said.
With this week being the one-year anniversary of Bryant's tragic death from a helicopter crash, the now Phoenix Suns forward relives facing his favorite player growing up his rookie season in 2012-13.
A second-round pick in the 2012 draft out of Marquette, Crowder was set to play in his first NBA regular-season game for the Dallas Mavericks – against Bryant and the Lakers at Staples Center in Los Angeles.