The 6 most beautiful moments from Bill Russell’s heartwarming Kobe Bryant friendship

Basketball Hall of Fame big man Bill Russell, near the top of the list of winningest players in American sports history, died on Sunday.

The NBA world mourned Russell, who was 88 years old when he passed away. But fortunately, the league found ways to pay tribute to the legendary basketball player while he was still alive.

In 2009, the league launched a new name for the award given to the best player in the championship series. The trophy became known as the Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player.

The late Kobe Bryant was named the trophy’s first winner, then won it again the following season. He joins just LeBron James and Kevin Durant as the only back-to-back winners since the name change.

Before he died in Jan. 2020, the Los Angeles Lakers legend also maintained an awesome friendship with Russell.

Learn about some of the best moments that fans saw in their relationship:

Russell and Bryant were mic’d up courtside at the New Orleans 2006 NBA All-Star Game. The longtime Celtics star told Bryant that he watches lots of Bryant’s games.

During the conversation, Russell shared with Bryant that his goal is to pinpoint a player’s agenda. Bryant said he does the same thing, and admitted that he picked up on that strategy by reading Russell’s books.

The two players shared a laugh, and Russell then told Bryant that he couldn’t be more proud of him even if he were his son.

I get goosebumps every time I watch this clip, especially when Bryant’s grin grows upon hearing this sentiment from Russell. Bryant, humbled, repeated the words “thank you” more than half a dozen times as the two shared a hug.

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A few years later, in 2012, Russell told Bill Simmons that Bryant “devoured” his book and even applied a few of the same concepts he learned to his game (via Grantland):

“That’s how I learned that basketball’s greatest teammate ever held something of a soft spot for Kobe, someone who’s battled more coworkers over the years than Chevy Chase. Russell enjoys his competitiveness, loves his work ethic, appreciates his respect for history, and over anything else, loves how he borrowed that scouting idea. No other player ever mentioned it to him. Just Kobe.”

I love that some of the mutual admiration derived from Bryant’s love for reading, Russell’s love for writing, and their shared love for winning at all costs.

During an interview with The Players’ Tribune in 2018, Russell spoke candidly about his philosophy about legacy.

He also spoke about mentoring Bryant, also adding these thoughts:

“When I think about Kobe Bryant, he was a young guy that played up to his ability. You could maybe outplay him, but you could not outwork him. The great players, black or white — it doesn’t make any difference — they never take anything for granted.”

Russell had respect for Bryant’s work ethic, which was second to none.

In 2018, Bryant reflected on the mentorship he received from Russell.

He said his relationship grew stronger as it evolved over the years, adding that Russell called him before his jersey retirement ceremony, telling him he would love to be there with him.

Bryant also said that one of the lessons he learned from Russell is that it was important to look at your teammates and recognize which of them had skills he did not have. Bryant said this advice helped him win the two titles without Shaquille O’Neal.

While presenting him with the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage, Kobe gave a powerful speech about Russell during the 2019 ESPY’s.

It’s worth watching the entire thing, but Bryant described some of the lessons he learned from Russell. He said the longtime Celtics star taught him how to become a masterful winner. Bryant described Russell as a “basketball genius” on the court, but felt the off-court contributions were even greater (via USA TODAY):

“Every generation has a responsibility to teach the next. One thing I learned about Bill was how he drew inspiration from his grandfather whose motto was, ‘A man has to draw a line within himself that he will not allow any man to cross.’ Bill learned from that, and added his own motto: ‘You disrespect the line, you disrespect me.’ More than 50 years later, Bill and his grandfather’s mottos still resonate powerfully and still speak loudly for Bill’s beliefs … Bill’s dissatisfaction with the injustices of the world never changed … His hope for a better tomorrow. Bill has led the way that inspires all of us — the next generation — to follow his lead.”

That was really such a beautifully written and delivered tribute from Kobe.

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It has been two and a half years since the world lost Bryant, and in his memory, Russell continued to champion the longtime Lakers superstar.

He had multiple tweets honoring his friend and he was often spotted wearing Bryant’s jersey and a hat with Kobe’s initials and a heart. Russell said he would “do anything” to honor Bryant and Bryant’s late daughter Gianna.

Russell said that he and Bryant had a “deeper connection” and noted that if you take Kobe’s number (24) and add them together, you would get Russell’s number (6).

The world has missed Bryant, and the world will miss Russell dearly as well.