"He wants to score 80 points on me" - Shane Battier admits he was scared to guard Kobe Bryant
"He wants to score 80 points on me" - Shane Battier admits he was scared to guard Kobe Bryant originally appeared on Basketball Network .
When it came to defending Kobe Bryant , only a few players truly bothered the "Black Mamba" into subpar shooting performances. After all, the 6'6" Los Angeles Lakers star was as transcendent as they came and was the closest reincarnation of his idol, Michael Jordan. One player who managed to get under Kobe's skin was Shane Battier , a 6'8" forward known for his defensive prowess and basketball IQ.
In a recent conversation with Pablo Torre, the two-time NBA champion divulged that he used to get very anxious while riding the bus to the Staples Center to take on the Lakers. The Duke product knew he was in for a long night every time he faced Bryant, with the latter keen on pouring in as many points as possible on him.
Anxiety attacks
The prospect of the 2008 league MVP dropping a 50-piece on him was more than enough to cause Battier some anxiety. During his prime, Shane was tasked with guarding the opposing team's best perimeter scorers, which meant he had to guard the likes of LeBron James , Tracy McGrady, and of course, Kobe. But it was "Vino" who gave him the most trouble.
"You name it — I played against the greatest players of my generation, and I miss that anxiety. Guarding Kobe Bryant is scary. I never will forget the feeling of getting on the bus at the Marina Del Rey Ritz. It's like a 45-minute ride to Staples Center, and I'm just thinking to myself, "S**t, this guy's trying to embarrass me,'" Shane shared . "Like, I know — he's lathered right now, and he wants to score 80 points on me tonight."
Productive paranoia
Battier knew that Kobe was better than him, no matter how he sliced him. The legendary Laker had superior athleticism, ball control, court vision, and scoring ability. With this in mind, he threw himself into mastering Bryant's percentages and preferred spots on the floor.
After all, hoops are a numbers game, so Shane tried to play the percentages, even if they were stacked against him. He studied game footage and memorized every move Kobe made, from his signature fadeaway to his explosive drives to the basket.
"That anxiety was real. I call it productive paranoia. Instead of letting it be paralyzing, I used that feeling. I thought, 'Man, I better know everything about Kobe — everything there is to know about him,'" Battier recalled of the many hours he spent poring over figures and game footage of the prolific scoring wingman.
"I tried to learn and threw myself into the data, the analytics. I learned Kobe better than Kobe knew himself," he added.
Shane's exceptional self-awareness was key to his rise to become one of the era's most outstanding defenders. He recognized that regardless of how well he played defense, the game's elite scorers would always find a way to put the ball in the basket; they were that good. And while other premier defenders got frustrated when their defensive efforts went unrewarded, Battier remained cool, knowing that his contributions were essential to the team's success.
"It allowed me to stay in the game. I understood — okay, I'm not going to stop these guys. But I can be a human yellow light and slow them down a little bit," Shane shared.
Considering that Kobe averaged 28.6 points on 43 percent shooting in the 37 times they played against one another in the league, Shane's assessment of his role was spot on. "The Black Mamba" still got his, but the stat sheet doesn't show the amount of effort he expended to score every point.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 9, 2025, where it first appeared.
