Kobe, Artest’s Love-Hate Affair Is Poetic, Really

Man, I just really love this game sometimes. Refresh yourself on this heart-warming video from last season:↵

↵↵Okay, now check out some of the quotes from Kobe and Ron Ron following their match-up last night, which featured plenty of trash talking between the two and ended in a Lakers win. From the Los Angeles Times:↵

↵↵⇥A few years ago, Bryant pleaded with the Lakers’ front office to trade for Artest. On Wednesday, he merely seemed offended by Artest’s in-game antics, calling the dialogue “edgy” and scoffing when asked about their one-on-one “battle.”↵⇥
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↵⇥“It wasn’t much of a battle ... I kicked his ...,” Bryant said. “We’ve had some battles in the past and he’s gotten the best of me a few times. [Wednesday], I got the best of him.”↵↵Artest?↵↵⇥“We are not friends out there at all,” Artest said. “After the season, we might play pick-up games or something like that. Not now.”↵↵This whole thing feels like it’s ripped off from some samurai movie I’ll end up seeing this weekend. Sure, it’s two tough competitors with their game faces on. But the idea that the greatest form of respect is utter disdain? That’s seriously deep, people.↵