Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady, has revealed that his close friend and Los Angeles Lakers legend, Kobe Bryant used to say he wanted to die young and be immortalised.
McGrady said this in an interview following the death of Bryant in an helicopter crash.
“(Kobe Bryant) used to say all the time: ‘I want to die young… I want to be immortalized…I want my career to be better than Michael Jordan’s,’ and I used to just think he was so crazy for saying that.”
Bryant gave McGrady a huge compliment in his book titled: “The Mamba Mentality.”
Bryant said McGrady, who averaged 19.6 points per game during his illustrious career, might have been his hardest matchup during his playing days.
Before injuries took a toll on his body, McGrady was a walking bucket.
He was a two-time scoring champion and seven-time All-Star.
The Florida native averaged 32.1 points per game during the 2002-03 season with the Orlando Magic.
McGrady scored an amazing 13 points in 33 seconds against the San Antonio Spurs in 2004.
Just like Bryant’s 81 points versus the Toronto Raptors, McGrady’s performance that day will live in infamy.
Bryant and McGrady are two of the greatest scorers in NBA history and often worked out with each other during their playing days.
Bryant had career numbers of 25.0 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.7 assists with the Lakers.
He was an 18-time All-Star, five-time NBA champion, two-time Finals MVP and won the regular season scoring title twice as well.
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