Kobe Bryant previously explained why he would reject Michael Jordan’s invites to play golf.
Both Bryant and Jordan will go down in history as two of NBA’s greatest ever players having won multiple titles during their respective careers.
Bryant played only for the Los Angeles Lakers during his career and won five NBA championships with the team.
He was also named the NBA Finals MVP on two occasions and NBA Most Valuable Player once in 2008.
After Jordan retired from playing, he often played golf with his fellow celebrities.
As revealed in an old interview, Bryant said he was invited by Jordan on multiple occasions, but politely declined.
Explaining his decision not to play golf with Jordan, Bryant said, as per Basketball Network: “Michael is competitive in all things that don’t make sense.
“He would try to get me to play golf all the time. ‘Mike, I know about you. I’ve written book reports about you in elementary school. I know you started playing golf in North Carolina. So that means if I’m doing the math, you’ve been playing golf for like a hundred years. I have not picked up a golf club ever. The last thing you’re going to do is get me on a golf course and annihilate me. Not gonna do it.’”
Jordan’s competitiveness was on show during the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona.
According to NBA photographer Nathaniel Butler, Jordan had a table tennis table delivered to his room and did not speak to anyone for two days after he lost to Duke Blue Devils’ Christian Laettner.
Butler said: “Come to find out, he had a ping-pong table delivered up to his room.
“No one knew about it. And he was practicing for the rematch. They had a rematch two days later, three days later. It was (something like) 21-4. He destroyed him.”
During an illustrious career, Jordan won six NBA championships whilst playing for the Chicago Bulls.