Kobe Bryant Visits Patriots At OTAs In Foxboro
By Michael Hurley, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- Part of what's made the Patriots such a successful franchise since the turn of the century has been a commitment to teamwork. That same dedication was not one of the calling cards of former Lakers great and future Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant.
Nevertheless, Bryant was a guest at Wednesday's OTA practice session at Gillette Stadium, according to ESPN's Mike Reiss.
As Patriots players returned to work in the voluntary offseason program on Wednesday, they were greeted by a celebrity guest from a different sport: Kobe Bryant.
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) May 30, 2018
Cornerbacks Stephon Gilmore and Eric Rowe, as well as receiver Cody Hollister all posted photos with Bryant to their Instagram accounts:
Suffice it to say, Bryant's visit represents a bit of a bigger basketball star than last year's visit from Dino Radja.
Tom Brady's absence appeared to have continued through Wednesday's practice session, but he no doubt would have liked to catch up with Bryant. The two have shared a chat in the past, as has Rob Gronkowski, who's also been absent from offseason work in Foxboro.
Bryant is currently in promotion mode for his new book, "The Mamba Mentality: How I Play." While he likely won't be holding any book signings in the land of the Celtics, he at least was able to make a trip to Foxboro.
One might think that he might not have been welcome there, as Bryant has long let it be known that his football allegiance lies with the Philadelphia Eagles.
The Patriots are apparently willing to overlook Bryant's schoolchild-like reaction to the ending of a certain football game held this past February.
Bryant's post-playing interests are varied. In addition to the book, he also has his own show on ESPN+, and he won an Oscar in March for his animated short film, "Dear Basketball." His visit to Foxboro was likely as much a learning experience for him as it was a chance for some Patriots to say hello to a Hall of Fame basketball star.
Guests at Patriots practices in recent years include Tony La Russa, Brad Stevens and Chip Kelly. Last week, Belichick hosted coaches from Miami, Iowa, Mississippi State and LSU.
While Brady and Gronkowski were not present on Wednesday, Julian Edelman and Dont'a Hightower were both participating in the practice session, as could be seen on photos posted on the Patriots' official website. Hightower missed one of the practice sessions last week.