Kobe Bryant dismisses talk of fresh feud with Shaquille O'Neal
Friday 30 August 2019 09:20, UK
Kobe Bryant has dismissed talk of a fresh feud with former Los Angeles Lakers team-mate Shaquille O'Neal.
The duo won three consecutive NBA titles together between 2000 and 2002 but, speaking at the PHP Agency Convention on July 29, Bryant said he could have won 12 titles in his NBA career if O'Neal had possessed his kind of work ethic.
Those comments fuelled talk of a reprise of the pair's long-running feud during their Lakers tenure that continued long after O'Neal was traded away to the Miami Heat in July 2004.
However, speaking at the US Open in New York on Thursday, Bryant downplayed talk of a fresh chapter in their war of words.
"Nah, I think people are making it like we're going back and forth but there's nothing to go back and forth about," he said. "There's nothing that's been said that hasn't been said before - it's nothing new."
Bryant had earlier used Twitter to quash rumours of renewed 'beef' with O'Neal.
Bryant was also asked about Team USA's chances at the FIBA World Cup, which starts on Saturday, and was quick to support coach Gregg Popovich's 12-man squad, despite the absence of the NBA's biggest superstars.
"We've got great players," he said. "I think the team gets a little chippier about it. Everybody's kind of writing them off because we don't have what people view as being marquee names.
"But these young players that are playing on this team will be those marquee names in two, three years and they're great players in their own right. They'll be fine."
Bryant also lent his support to American tennis prodigy Coco Gauff.
"It's amazing at that age, not just the skill she possesses but the poise." he said. "Dropping the first set yesterday but being able to maintain her cool, maintain her composure - not get rattled - she goes out and performs.
"It's very, very rare to find an athlete at that age to be so trusting of their skill, to be patient with it. She's a phenomenon, for sure."
What advice would Bryant offer to Gauff to ensure she maintains her focus and continues to improve?
"I think it's the things that come along with the success at an early age, right?" he said.
"It's the more commitments, more responsibilities, more opportunities - especially off the court, there will be opportunities for her and she will have to pick and choose and weave her way through that so none of those things get in the way of her continuing to develop as an athlete.
"I think that's the hardest thing, what to say 'no' to so it doesn't compromise her progress as a player."
