Michael Jordan Calling Kobe "That Little Laker Boy" Made Fans Emotional

Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant shared a very special relationship throughout the years. Jordan was on his way out of the league when Kobe was starting his career and the Lakers legend looked to MJ for advice. Jordan saw a lot of himself in Kobe and made sure to be the mentor he needed. In 1998, the two got to square off in the NBA All-Star game as Kobe played for the Western Conference and Michael played for the East.

During last night’s episode of “The Last Dance,” archival footage showed Jordan in the East locker room, talking to his teammates about Kobe. At the time, Bryant was very young and Jordan referred to him as “that little Laker boy.” This little acknowledgment was immediately recognized as one of the highlights of last night’s episode.

Jordan was adamant about being able to guard Kobe one-on-one and that’s exactly what he did. In fact, Jordan went on to win the All-Star MVP trophy and later that year, won his sixth NBA title.

Apart from Jordan’s accomplishments, fans were emotional seeing Jordan speak so innocently about Kobe. Bryant passed away in a helicopter accident back in January and fans are still sad about it, rightfully so. Just seeing Kobe back on the screen brought back tons of emotions although it was nice to see his relationship with MJ recounted in such a tasteful way.

Episodes 7 and 8 will air next Sunday, May 10th at 9 PM EST.