Kobe Bryant lit a fire under his LA Lakers teammate after winning the 2008 gold medal.
The 2008 Team USA has been famously dubbed ‘The Redeem Team’ as they were on a mission to make a stunning comeback after a forgettable run at the 2004 Olympics.
To make sure that the ’08 Team USA was as motivated as they could get, Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant was named as the captain.
As expected, Bryant led Team USA to a famous win over Spain in the gold medal match during the 2008 Olympics. It was a special win since Lakers teammate Pau Gasol was on Spain’s team.
Over the years, fans have heard a plethora of stories about Kobe’s ‘Mamba Mentality.’ In simple terms, Bryant did everything possible to get an advantage over his opponents.
Moreover, Bryant was never shy to flex his achievements either. We all remember his famous interview after surpassing Shaquille O’Neal’s total ring tally.
Coming back to 2008, Pau Gasol recently shared a story of how Bryant surprisingly used his Olympics gold medal to motivate the big man.
“During the first day of training camp, Kobe puts his gold medal in my locker.
“I’m like, ‘What is this gold medal doing in my locker?’ I see the gold medal and I look back, there he is looking at me,” Gasol revealed.
“I’m like, ‘Come on. Congratulations. What else you want me to tell you? Just take your medal.’ But it was all very intentional. He was trying to get me in the right state of mind,” he added.
The summer of 2008 was a tough time for Gasol. The last few months were full of setbacks for the former No. 3 overall pick.
First, he was surprisingly traded by the Memphis Grizzlies to the Lakers. He then helped the Purple and Gold reach the 2008 NBA Finals, only to suffer a heartbreaking defeat at the hands of the Big 3 of the Boston Celtics.
If that wasn’t enough, the Gasol-led Spanish team was defeated by Team USA in the Olympics. Bryant likely knew Gasol wasn’t in the right state of mind.
As a result, he pulled off that gold medal stunt during the training camp. Well, Bryant’s gamble paid off as he and Gasol led the Lakers to back-to-back NBA Championships in 2009 and 2010.
