Sports Radio Interviews

Kobe Bryant: “I am in great shape and I feel like I am in better shape than I was last year.”

Kobe Bryant has enjoyed this offseason like none before. After years of doubt, Kobe was finally able to get the monkey off his back and win a NBA title without Shaquille O’Neal. When Shaq went to Miami and won a title with Dwayne Wade, Shaq made sure to rub it in Kobe’s face. That is why Kobe’s 4th championship is the sweetest because it is his. He placed the Lakers on his back all season long and his teammates showed up when it mattered most in the playoffs.

Since LeBron James has stepped up his game people have stated that he has surpassed Kobe as the league’s best player. Last I checked LeBron has zero NBA titles to Kobe’s 4 titles. So no more need to question the greatness of Kobe Bryant. He will be the 2nd best player to play the game when it is all said and done behind Michael Jordan.

Kobe Bryant joined KLAC in Los Angeles to talk about how his offseason was celebrating a NBA Title, his satisfaction level during the summer, whether his body feels different and will he change anything about the upcoming season, what Ron Artest is going to bring to the team, whether Ron Artest will defend the number one scorer on the opposing team, and whether he is happy with the way the Eagles have played so far.

On how his offseason was celebrating a NBA Title:

“It was quick as it should be.  You want to play late into the season and have your summer nice and short so it was good.”

 On his satisfaction level during the summer:

“I was very happy the summer because you get a chance to enjoy it a lot more.  So you are kicking back chilling with your kids reminiscing about your year as opposed to being down you are very excited because you accomplished a goal you set out to do that you didn’t accomplish they year before.  So it’s a good feeling.”

On how he felt working out during the summer:

“Well I took about a month and half off which is a lot for me.  Then after that I got right back to it.  I feel great now.”

On what Ron Artest is going to bring to the team:

“Well aside from his physical presence he is just a tough guy.  As far as from an execution standpoint, we will be able to get into the penalty a lot earlier because he attacks the basket and puts teams into foul trouble.  We are a pretty good foul shooting team so just from that standpoint alone he will help us out tremendously.”

On whether Ron Artest will defend the number one scorer on the opposing team:

 “What we will do actually is I had to be a lock down defender for the past several years.  I think now it allows me to do is play passing lanes more.  Create turnovers more.  Get more steals and things like that.  He can just be our lock down corner and I could be more of a Troy Polamalu.”

 On whether he is happy with the way the Eagles have played so far:

“I am pleased but it is kind of a messy situation because I believe the quarterback position should be somewhat stable.  You got so much stability going on it’s tough for a team to identify who that leader is from week to week.  It’s confusion.”

Kobe Bryant on KLAC with Petros and Money

Tags: Kobe, Kobe Bryant, LA LAkers, NBA, NBA Championship, NBA Finals, Shaq, Shaquille O'Neal