Stephen Curry praises Kobe Bryant before final Oakland matchup

By Jovan Buha
Published

Stephen Curry still remembers the first time he met Kobe Bryant.

The Golden State Warriors star, who was a 19-year-old sophomore at Davidson at the time, was attending the Los Angeles Lakers star's annual skills camp in Orange County, and tried to soak up as much information as he could from the best player in the world at his position (and yes, Curry was a shooting guard back then).

When asked about Bryant's final appearance at Oracle Arena on Thursday -- if he even plays -- Curry was nothing but complimentary, and reflected back on his feelings during his first time playing against Bryant in an NBA games, via Inside Bay Area:

It's fascinating seeing Curry gush over another star given his current stature in the league.

Curry has now evolved the NBA's golden boy, reflected in this season's All-Star Game voting (even though he trails Bryant, who's retiring after this season, for first place by just over 300,000 votes). Guards entering the league are having those moments while going up against him, and he's appreciative to be apart of the next generation of stars to take the torch from Bryant and his generation:

Oracle Arena has notoriously been filled with Lakers fans whenever Kobe is in town, though that has shifted recently with the Warriors becoming champions and a much better organization overall. It's much more difficult to get Warriors tickets now, too. 

How will the Bay Area fans respond to a legend who's scored more of his points against them than any other team?

Well, Curry believes Warriors fans will give Bryant the standing ovation and praise he deserves, and Curry looks forward to that moment -- as long as Golden State still gets the W.