Kobe Bryant was 'ultimate competitor,' Carl English remembers

Newfoundland and Labrador basketball player Carl English says NBA legend Kobe Bryant was a fierce competitor that he was "blessed" to play against. 

Bryant, his daughter and seven other people were killed in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, Calif., on Sunday. He retired in 2016 as the third-leading scorer in NBA history after a 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers.

English says he was devastated and shocked when he heard the news of Bryant's death but has fond memories of challenging him on the court. 

"It was definitely a highlight of my career.… The man's a legend, just so special to the game of basketball," he said.

"When something like this happens, it hits home. It hits home as a father. I mean, how many times do you travel to practice with your child? And it can happen so easy."

English said he trained with Bryant and the Lakers while playing at the University of Hawaii and played against him and a star-studded American team in international competition in 2007 and 2008.

He said he even wore No. 8 with Team Canada because of Bryant's influence.

Choo-choo train

Bryant would often be matched up against the other team's top players to shut them down, English said, something he did to him in 2007 — in an unusual fashion.

"He was like a choo-choo train in my ear, so everywhere I moved, he'd grab my arm and he'd be like a train, and as I'd run faster, he'd make the sound faster," he said.

"[He was an] ultimate competitor, a force to be reckoned with."

English said he was more confident when the two faced each other again the following year before the Beijing Olympics, really challenging Bryant and shaking off his defence.

"Both of us were going at each other pretty good.… There was a play on the left side of the floor, I cross him over, I bring him back and the crowd made a crazy noise," he said.

"I crossed him two times in the same play, but something snapped and next time he ripped me at half court … then we trapped him at half court, he stepped through it and hit a bank shot and he's like, 'You've gone and woke up Mamba.'"

English said it was an "amazing experience" to guard and be guarded by Bryant, "hands down" the best player he's ever played against.

The Mamba mentality

But the influence of Bryant's intense work ethic and drive to get better — what he called the Mamba mentality — was felt beyond the basketball court, English said.

"When people talk about his mentality, the Mamba mentality, it transcends through all sports," he said.

"A generation of people have been inspired by his mentality and what he's done as a basketball player."

English said it was a relentless pursuit of greatness that made Kobe Bryant the player he was.

"I think that's what set him apart. He didn't start off as a star; he was highly talented, but he worked his way to the top and became one of the greatest of all time."

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