"It's 11, 12 at night, I'm gonna go out, and he going to the gym" - Allen Iverson recalls his first interaction with Kobe

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When it comes to hard workers on the basketball court throughout the history of the game, very few names jump out like Kobe Bryant. Bean was the definition of a workaholic during his fruitful 20-year career in the league. Working out in the gym, no matter the time of day or night, Kobe was dedicated to perfecting his craft.

There have been countless stories about the late Los Angeles Lakers legend's intensity, which sometimes even bordered lunacy, and his 1996 draft class peer Allen Iverson has further cemented his argument as one of the most dedicated players ever to step foot on the hardwood.

“When he came from high school, he was crazy,” Iverson narrated on the latest episode of the Knuckleheads podcast. “I went to LA to meet him, we was playing the Lakers… And I never been to LA. He was like, ‘Yo, what you doing tonight?’ I said, ‘I’m going to the club.’ He was like, ‘Alright, well, I’m going to the gym.’ This dude is a dog. It’s mf 11, 12 at night, and I’m gonna go out, and he going to the gym. And that’s how he was. He had that in him in the beginning.”

We talkin’ bout practice, man

Even though the two were still in their rookie, A.I. definitely knew how to have fun while dominating the opponents on any given night. Bryant, on the other hand, was built differently. He lived basketball day and night, striving to be the best version of himself, which he ultimately achieved through hard work and incredible talent.

There is no doubt that both players were offensive juggernauts who struck fear into their opponents in their prime. However, it would be fair to acknowledge that Kobe had a longer and more successful career overall. This was in large part due to his off-the-court activities and dedication to self-improvement, which Bean had in him from his earliest days in the big boys league, unlike A.I., who had a more, let’s call it relaxed approach to practice (Hint: We talkin' 'bout practice, man).

Bryant and the Lakers got the last laugh

Coming from one of the best draft classes, Kobe and Allen have shared the biggest stage in basketball for quite some time. The two electrifying scorers met 29 times in the regular season, with Bryant and his team coming out on top 16 times. Even though The Answer averaged more points per game than his '96 classmate (25.3 compared to Kobe's 24.0), the Lakers consistently outperformed him when it mattered most—in the playoffs.

The first time the two met in the playoffs was in the 2001 NBA Finals, in which the Purple and Gold won 4-1 after losing the series opener to the Philadelphia 76ers. The fans had to wait seven years to witness another “Clash of the Titans” in the playoffs, this time in the opening round of the Western Conference. A.I. was donning the Nuggets jersey at the time, but The Black Mamba and Co. mercilessly swept Denver.

While it is true that the two legends of the game had wildly different approaches to the realm of professional sports, they both had their fair share of success in the Association.