Larry Nance Jr., who was taken by the Los Angeles Lakers with the No. 27 overall pick in the NBA Draft last week, must be terrified for his first workout with his new teammates. I’m sure all rookies are nervous to meet Kobe Bryant for the first time, but Nance has a bit more history with the five-time champion than most.
As you have likely heard, Nance called Bryant a “rapist” in a tweet he sent more than three years ago. He has since deleted the tweet, and Bryant said during his sit-down with ESPN’s Jemele Hill on Saturday that Nance sent him a very polite message to apologize.
“The kid figured it out himself,” Kobe explained. “He’s a kid, man. He actually sent me a great message [Friday], which is really funny. I looked at it, and it was like, ‘This is when you know it’s about time to hang these things up, when your teammate writes you, Hi, Mr. Bryant.’
“I was like, ‘What the f—?’ But it was really nice and apologetic about what had happened. I said, ‘Dude, listen. We’ve all said things and done things that we regret and wish we could take back. It’s water under the bridge, man. Welcome to the team.’ He writes back, ‘Thank you, sir.'”
Bryant may forgive Nance, but we all know about Kobe’s tendency to blow up on teammates during practice. If you think he’s not going to give the rookie a little extra, you’re crazy.
