"Why didn't the Lakers draft him?" - Kobe's first reaction after watching highlights of rookie Jayson Tatum

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In 2018, NBA skills coach Drew Hanlen posted a video of Jayson Tatum mirroring Kobe Bryant's moves. For those who saw it before it was taken down due to a copyright issue, the then-Celtics rookie looked like a replica of the Black Mamba.

Hanlen began working with Jayson when he was 13, and throughout their partnership, it was obvious that Tatum patterned his game after Kobe's in the same manner as Bryant copied Michael Jordan's game.

During an interview with Fox Sports, the Pure Sweat Basketball CEO revealed that they showed the tape to Kobe, and the late Lakers greatly had an interesting response to watching Tatum on film for the first time.

"We actually showed Kobe the video and he was like 'Why didn't the Lakers draft him?' which is pretty funny after seeing that," said Hanlen.

The Lakers drafted Lonzo Ball

Kobe asked because the Lakers owned the No.2 overall pick of the 2017 NBA Draft and had a chance to draft Tatum after the Philadelphia 76ers went with Markelle Fultz as the No.1 overall pick. But just like the Sixers, the Lakers passed on the then-Duke superstar.

L.A. used the No.2 pick to draft point guard Lonzo Ball out of UCLA. Ball was heavily hyped as the Lakers' next great point guard, drawing comparisons to Hall of Famer Magic Johnson.

But Lonzo never lived up to expectations. After two underwhelming seasons, Lonzo got traded to the New Orleans Pelicans as part of the Lakers' trade package for Anthony Davis.

They didn't even invite JT to a workout

Going back to the 2017 NBA Draft, Lavar Ball completely sweet-talked the Lakers into picking his son, so the Purple and Gold didn't even bother to invite Tatum to a pre-draft workout. That was a huge miss because, as Tatum admitted, he was a massive Kobe fan, and the Lakers were his favorite team growing up.

"The Lakers were my favorite team, and Kobe was my favorite player," Tatum said. "So it was crazy that the Lakers had the second pick, and I was so close to a dream come true. But it was just like they didn't want anything to do with me at the time."

Tatum taking over the reins of L.A. from Kobe would have changed the Lakers' history as we know it now. Instead, JT has blossomed into one of the best players in the league. Including this season, Tatum has made five straight All-Star Game appearances and three consecutive All-NBA First Team selections as a member of the Celtics.