"Whoever wanna be part of history, throw me the ball": Caron Butler recalls wildest Kobe Bryant memory
Caron Butler played 14 years in the NBA, one of which was with the LA Lakers during the 2004-05 season playing alongside the late great Kobe Bryant. On his appearance on "The OGs Show" with Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller on June 5, the two-time All-Star was asked what his most memorable moment playing with Bryant was.
Butler fondly recalled an instance while playing the Charlotte Hornets, where the five-time NBA champion displayed his trademark take-charge mentality in leading the team to victory.
He shared:
"The time we was in Charlotte. Whoever was our coach at the time, he was drawing up the play. Kobe just like kind of like wiped the board real quick. He was like 'Hey, who the f*** want to be part of history?' Lamar [Odom] was like, "S***, I want to be part of history'. And he's like, "You take the ball out. Imma get open right here. Throw me the ball. Everybody run out the damn out the tunnel. Game."
The 2004-05 season was the year that Kobe Bryant was thrust to solo leadership of the LA Lakers after Shaquille O'Neal departed for the Miami Heat via trade. Butler was part of the package from the Heat along with Lamar Odom and Brian Grant.
The Lakers found the going tough that season, missing the playoffs with a 34-48 record. Bryant played 66 games that year and averaged 27.6 points, six assists, 5.9 rebounds and 1.3 steals.
As for Butler, he had averages of 15.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.4 steals in 77 games. The following season he took his talents to the Washington Wizards, where he became an All-Star.
Kobe Bryant took leadership seriously
When he entered the NBA, Kobe Bryant always wanted to make a difference by being a leader. It took a while for him to realize that but when he did, there was no stopping him as he took it seriously.
In a pep talk with the Alabama football team in 2018, two years after he retired from the NBA, 'Black Mamba' spoke about how to be an effective leader, saying:
"To be an effective leader, you have to be a really good listener and not to what's being said, but to what's not being said. You have to be really observant. That was a big transition for me.
I went from being a scorer and a floor general ... To being a leader and that meant putting others first. That means not worrying about are you in rhythm, are you playing well in this game, are you ready to go, to being, are you ready? What can I do to help them be ready."
Kobe Bryant played 20 years in the NBA, all with the Lakers, he spent half of that time as the bona-fide leader of the team, following the departure of Shaquille O'Neal.
During that run, he won back-to-back titles (2009 and 2010), part of five he won overall, and became one of the foremost leaders in the NBA until his retirement.