Robb: Kobe Bryant Used Dropkick Murphys As Motivation To Beat Celtics
BOSTON (CBS) -- Kobe Bryant will make his final trip to the TD Garden as a player this Wednesday, as his struggling Los Angeles Lakers face off with the Celtics in Boston one last time before his retirement in April.
Bryant's Lakers and the Celtics have arguably been one of the best rivalries in NBA history, even though the intensity of those battles has taken a dip in recent years as both franchises have struggled through a rebuild.
The Celtics have made a faster climb in that process, while the Lakers may not have bottomed out yet given their 5-25 start to the 2015-16 season. On paper, that type of team would make Wednesday's matchup a bit of a dud.
Still, the rivalry remains in place between Bryant and the city of Boston after so many heated battles in the postseason has created fond memories for both sides. The veteran shooting guard reflected on that rivalry, including two NBA Finals showdowns between the teams in 2008 and 2010, by recalling how he used two familiar tunes as motivation.
"I remember when we were losing [in Game 6 of the NBA Finals], Bryant said of his 2008 defeat while speaking after the Lakers' loss to the Clippers on Christmas day. "They played that Journey song ["Don't Stop Believin'"] and the whole arena started singing that song, and I hated that damn song for two years. Seriously. But I listened to that song every single day because it just reminded me of that feeling.
"Same thing with the [Dropkick Murphys song "I'm Shipping Up to Boston"]. I'm listening to Dropkick Murphys all the time just because I want to remember that feeling. So to go back in 2010 and have that redemption [meant a lot]."
Bryant actually ruminated about the 2010 NBA Finals showdown while sitting on the bench with current and 2010 teammate Metta World Peace during Friday's game as the pair faced off with former Celtic Paul Pierce.
"I was telling Metta when I was on the bench and Paul [Pierce] was running down [the court]," Bryant recalled. "I said, 'You know, Metta, I'm so damn happy we won that 2010 Finals, dude, because I'd be sick as [expletive] sitting here right now [if we didn't]. He felt the same way."
Additionally, Bryant spoke about the prestige of the Celtic franchise that has remained in place throughout his 19 NBA seasons.
"There's something about that [Celtics] green. It's a different green than any other green that's in the world. It's weird. It's like that green glows. So I'm looking forward to competing there and being in that environment one more time."
Bryant's visit will cap a memorable month of visitors in December for Garden fans. The venue also hosted Kevin Garnett for potentially his final visit to town as a player last week.
Brian Robb covers the Celtics for CBS Boston and contributes to NBA.com, among other media outlets. You can follow him on Twitter@CelticsHub.