Kobe clarifies Pelinka's false story about him dining with Heath Ledger
Los Angeles Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka told a story last year about Kobe Bryant dining with Heath Ledger after watching "The Dark Knight" - something that couldn't have happened because Ledger died of a drug overdose six months before the movie was released in 2008.
Bryant provided some clarification of the story on the latest episode of the "Knuckleheads with Quentin Richardson and Darius Miles" podcast. He explained that while he didn't meet Ledger, the late actor did provide him with motivation for his 61-point performance against the New York Knicks on Feb. 2, 2009.
"I didn't go out to dinner in New York. I stayed in my room," Bryant said. "This is actually the story Rob told that he got confused about, the Heath Ledger stuff. Because I stayed up watching Batman and watching Heath Ledger. And then I went and started researching about Heath Ledger, and how he got into character, and how he just became all-consuming. That inspired me to go into my Garden mode. When I go in there, I don't wanna say hi to these people. I don't wanna talk to nobody. Everybody leave me alone."
Bryant also spoke to Richardson and Miles about going up against Michael Jordan at his first NBA All-Star Game, why he switched his jersey from No. 8 to No. 24, and coaching his daughter's basketball team.
- With h/t to Deadspin