Thursday, June 18th, 2009 at 12:24 pm  |  25 responses

Videos: Kobe Bryant Visits the Tonight Show

Full disclosure. We’re posting these videos with guilt. It’s nothing against Kobe Bryant or the Lakers and certainly not our dude Conan O’Brien.

When a team wins the title, they own the media for weeks. And rightfully so. But appreciation is often overdone, and the NBA Finals is never an exception.

Luke Walton has already guested on more radio interviews in the past two days than he has in his career. Derek Fisher all of a sudden gets as much media space as a Brett Favre press conference. And the Finals MVP gets an obligatory invitation to guest on the late night talk shows. We’re hating, but not on the players. We’re hating on the predictability of the system. The repetitive love sessions quickly leave a sour taste.

You already know who’s on the cover of SLAM 131. We gave Kobe and L.A. ample appreciation online, and it will continue. So who are we kidding, we’ll appreciate over and over until we can appreciate no more. No matter how contrived it all is.

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  • Darksaber Posted: Jun.18 at 12:37 pm
    Umm, Ryne? we know who’s on the cover? i don’t. Suggestion: Chuck Daly standing amongst the OG Dream Teamers. (know what, forget cover, make that the next poster and i’m sold)

  • truthteller Posted: Jun.18 at 1:01 pm
    Last year it was KG and Paul Pierce every single time, every single place! It really made me sick ’cause I despise the Celtics! But like the writer said, it’s the system so I got over it. Laker and Kobe haters get over it.

  • Eboy Posted: Jun.18 at 1:02 pm
    Good to know ahead of time that issue 131 will be a coloring book for my kid. Thanks Ryne!

  • Eboy Posted: Jun.18 at 1:08 pm
    Oh, and if you want to link an ENTERTAINING video, catch Scoop vs. Kenny Mayne’s joint on the Follower, just for Scoop’s excellent acting skills!!

  • Blinguo Posted: Jun.18 at 1:12 pm
    Hey Dark, SLAM makes a Finals re-cap issue to cap off the season with a Championship photo cover… But you knew that and I won’t hold it against you. Or maybe its Phil Jax shaking hands with Dicky B-Super Ref. Oldest SLAM cover subjects ever. Robert Horry is looking over their shoulders from the background. Conan went weak on that Kobe picture. No if they mated, no who he would be played by in a movie lookalikes (which they did earlier in the show as the pre-interview skit). Step it up Conan!

  • Karl Hungus Posted: Jun.18 at 1:40 pm
    Wow, conan is tall! The magic should look into signing him to guard kobe for next year.

  • Zee! Posted: Jun.18 at 1:54 pm
    Lake show all day. Funny how haters can’t congratulate when a squad wins the chip. Enjoy the Lakers media love until next season tricks. Kobe got the only MVP that mattered this year, FINALS!!!! I hope the attention to the Lakers chip win keeps the hate to a minimum. Envy/hate is such a weak emotion.

  • Zee! Posted: Jun.18 at 1:55 pm
    SLAM 131 will be the highest selling issue yet.

  • JAMES Posted: Jun.18 at 3:06 pm
    IIWII

  • ENDS Posted: Jun.18 at 6:06 pm
    IIWII Part 2 Dont Make so many damn kobe covers in the rest of the year. get off of Lebron’s junk 2 Last 3 Ish. Have been a Disapointment MJ, Really are ya’ll effected by the economy that bad

  • Simmy Sosa Posted: Jun.18 at 6:25 pm
    Yeah Conan’s like 6’4″. Doesn’t Kobe know your supposed to dress up for talk shows?

  • Gerard Himself Posted: Jun.18 at 7:53 pm
    yeah what Blinguo said. How can anybody not know what the next cover would be? Most of you have been reading SLAM for years, so everytime a team wins a championship, a player of that team is on the cover. Do the math.

  • Mo Charlo Posted: Jun.18 at 10:09 pm
    Nobody’s going to mention the frog on the lilypad?

  • Hisham Posted: Jun.19 at 3:04 am
    Yeah but doesn’t the championship cover always appear in like October or something? Just like the allstar issue is somewhere in May. There’s always a 2 to 3 month delay

  • Darksaber Posted: Jun.19 at 6:22 am
    my senriments exactly, Hish.

  • Darksaber Posted: Jun.19 at 6:22 am
    my sentiments exactly, Hish.

  • Freedom Fries Posted: Jun.19 at 7:22 am
    Makes u kinda heart kobe the person, huh?

  • Jukai Posted: Jun.19 at 9:49 am
    FF: He seems like a sorta cool dude when he’s not r*ping women (SORRY JUSTIN).

  • Freedom Fries Posted: Jun.19 at 10:02 am
    The only comment I have on the whole r*pe issue is he’s awfully glad he didn’t have Mike Tyson’s lawyers (or lack thereof) and timing. If I had a time machine, high up on my list would be to right that wrong and see where Mike’s legacy would have taken him minus prison time (and a better supporting cast after Cus passed). I just saw the Tyson flick the other day and man did that ever bring back good times (that is the first half of the story – KO after KO).

  • coop Posted: Jun.19 at 10:49 am
    I didnt see any of this hate last year on the Boston Celtics. This is sad that if Kobe’s team wins people bring out all this negativity.

  • Gerard Himself Posted: Jun.19 at 12:16 pm
    I agree with Coop.

  • Bigg j Dogg Posted: Jun.19 at 2:40 pm
    I like the idea of a Lakers Championship 100 times better than all that Celtics crap from last season. I hate Paul Pierce and all those other sorry ass Celtics.
    Celtic fans, put your dusty ass jerseys and banners back in storage for another 20 years.

  • Darksaber Posted: Jun.21 at 5:30 am
    Just watched the whole segment, and Kobe was a great guest. No question dude knows how to be engaging on camera. But the way Conan pushed those signed, game worn Zoom Kobe’s aside was so damn funny. Coco was seemingly touched at first then dropped them Kicks like hot potatoes as soon as he caught a whiff. Hilarious.

  • SLAM ONLINE | » Why LeBron’s Ego Deserves a Pass Posted: Jun.22 at 11:30 am
    [...] about this book about Michael Jordan’s selfishness and arrogance? Kobe Bryant, possibly the most appreciated basketball player at the moment, was hated for his arrogance from the moment he held a press [...]

  • DG Posted: Jul.2 at 1:41 am
    a. whens this drop?
    b. ill give the team there due not just kb24 if ariza didntstep up like he did for 2 straight series we might be talkin bout carmelo right now

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