Once I’m talked to, I’ll have some fun.”īryant also reflected on his Dec. Said Nowitzki, “I’m not really a big trash-talker. Enunciate!’ But he dished it right back, man. “I said, ‘Dirk, I can’t understand your accent. “He’s one of the rare guys that would talk trash and he and I would talk back and forth all the time and have those conversations and I always got a kick out of it,” Bryant said. When asked what he’ll miss most about Nowitzki, Bryant said it’s the trash talk. “I always tell the story, after games sometimes, we were in Central time, I was rushing home to watch Kobe do his thing in the fourth quarter when they were in L.A.” Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki, seen here in the 2009 playoffs, faced off 53 times in their long careers. His competitiveness, his clutch shots, that’s what I remember the most. Nowitzki added, “The league is going to miss one of the greatest to ever play. It’s been a pleasure and an honor to compete against him basically almost my entire career.' “He’s one of the best to ever lace ‘em up. “Like I said, this entire time, he’s our Michael Jordan, for our generation,” Nowitzki said. Nowitzki offered nothing but praise for Bryant. “When no cameras are around, I’m sure we’ll get together and we’ll have a beer or two and play against each other one-on-one,” Bryant said before the game.

Nowitzki sank the dagger jumper on one of his patented fade-away rainbow shots along the baseline, right in front of where Bryant was sitting on the Lakers’ bench.Īfter the shot went through, Nowitzki quickly went over and patted the Lakers star, and Bryant patted him back.Įven if he missed the game, the 37-year-old Bryant said he’s sure that he’ll face the 37-year-old Nowitzki at some point down the road. Nowitzki sill put on a show, though, hitting what proved to be the game-winning shot with 2.1 seconds left in a 92-90 Dallas Mavericks victory over the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center. Tuesday night would have marked the 54th and final matchup, but Bryant sat out with a sore right shoulder. LOS ANGELES - All told, Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki have played each other 53 times over 18 seasons, with four meetings coming in the postseason.

Kobe trash talker