20 Mamba Mentality Stories- Some True, Some False

9. Mr. Consistent

Laker teammate, John Celestand, became determined to be the first player in the gym for practice during the 1999-2000 after Kobe Bryant broke his right wrist. Celestand assumed Kobe would need to take extra time off to rest and heal, giving him the opportunity to become the new early bird on team.

Of course, Celestand was completely wrong about Kobe. He realized he was more than just a step behind the Mamba when he walked into the gym for an early practice session and saw Kobe was drenched in sweat from practicing his shot with his left hand all morning.