Stevens: Kobe's Career Speaks For Itself
BOSTON (CBS) -- Kobe Bryant will make his final visit to Boston Wednesday night as the Lakers take on the Celtics, and though Brad Stevens wasn't on the Boston bench for the C's most recent NBA Finals clashes with Los Angeles, he knows all about one of the most historic rivalries in sports.
"The Lakers-Celtics rivalry speaks for itself, and that adds to the legacies of all these great players who have played the game," Stevens told Rich Keefe and Sean McAdam (filling in for Zolak & Bertrand) on 98.5 The Sports Hub Wednesday afternoon. "On either side, some of the best players to play basketball have been on these two teams. To have a guy who has won five championships -- who without question has been one of the harder workers in the league and the highest of high achievers -- go out, you have a lot of respect for him and memories watching. If you lived in Boston, a lot of the memories aren't good ones."
Stevens was a junior in high school when he first heard of Kobe, as a teammate of his went to play for La Salle, where Bryant's father served as an assistant coach. While on his recruiting visit, Stevens' friend saw a 15-year-old who was making all of the college kids look bad. That didn't change the following year when his friend was part of the team.
"The stories just kept coming back, that this kid is ridiculous with what he could do with the ball and his athleticism," said Stevens. "We followed him close from that point on; his career speaks for itself."
While Kobe's stats and accomplishments are etching in the history books, Stevens said it's his day-to-day preparation that stood out most.
"The biggest impact he had on the game, and in a lot of the guys that are looking to make a mark, is the work ethic," he said. "I don't want to spend all my time talking about him because we have prepare to try and beat these guys. But he certainly is a very accomplished person."
The Celtics are hoping to extend their season-high four-game win streak Wednesday night against Los Angeles. Even though the Lakers are 5-27, the second worst team in the NBA, Stevens knows his team will have to be at their best to claim their fifth straight W.
"The one thing you can do in this 82-game schedule is you can overreact to slides or streaks either way. We had some really good moments of basketball in our losses and some really inconsistent moments in the last four games we've won," he said. "The goal is to play well and to try to get to our best level. I think we can play better than we've played; we've had some offensive ruts that we have to cure."
While the offensive struggles have been frustrating, Stevens has been pleased with his team's overall commitment on the defensive end.
"It's allowed us to create and identity and be in a lot of game regardless. Hopefully that continues," he said. "We're going to have to defend well tonight and hopefully we play a lot better offensively."
Stevens also touches on the return of guard Marcus Smart. Listen to the full interview: