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When Kobe Bryant Ran Through Pau Gasol in 2008 Olympics and Shocked His Teammates; All You Need to Know
Kobe Bryant played basketball like an obsessed man and he showcased his obsession when he barged through his teammate Pau Gasol in the Olympics final.
Everybody in the NBA was familiar with the bond between Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol. The duo played together for the LA Lakers and considered each other brothers. However, when Kobe ran through Pau Gasol in the Olympics in 2008, it shocked everybody including his teammates from Team USA.
Gasol was acquired by the Lakers in the final stretch of the 2007–08 campaign. Bryant and Gasol showed quickly that they were on the same page as they guided Los Angeles to three consecutive NBA Finals appearances, two of which ended with Lakers championships.
What did Dwyane Wade, Pau Gasol, and LeBron James say about the incident?
The story was narrated by Kobe’s teammates at that time, LeBron James, and Dwyane Wade in a Netflix documentary by the name, ‘The Redeem Team’. The duo explained how they were surprised when Bryant talked about his plan with Team USA teammates before the game.
The legendary Laker star said that he knows about the play that Gasol will run in the opening few minutes of the game and how he is going to run through his ‘f—king chest’. However, they thought that he wouldn’t do it since both Kobe and Gasol were like brothers. But Kobe was a man of his word and did exactly what he said and took the early foul in the match.
Gasol explained: "He just went right into the middle of my chest, tried to get right through me to send a message. Not just to me, but to his teammates to say, 'Hey, this might be my brother. I play with him. We're close. But I don't care about anything else but winning."
ALSO READ: LeBron James Feared Love for Kobe Bryant Would Prevent Lakers' Fans From Fully Embracing Him: Report
Team USA won the Gold
Team USA was the firm favorite for the Gold and never looked like playing second fiddle to anyone. They won the Olympic Gold that summer by beating the Spaniards in the final. The game's final score was 118-107 in favor of the much fancied Team USA.
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