In the eyes of New York Knicks fans, Kobe Bryant may have dished out one of his best assists on a day he never took the floor.

Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson looked back on the life and career of the late Kobe Bryant on what would’ve been the week of the Los Angeles Lakers great’s 46th birthday through an NBA/Nike-produced special. While many memories of Bryant’s legendary NBA career were shared … such as his 81-point game against Toronto from 2006 … Brunson recalled a personal cherished memory from Christmas Day in 2014, when he took in the Lakers’ holiday clash with the Chicago Bulls.

“Kobe didn’t play, but he had a pair of Kobe 9s he was going to wear, the red ‘Christmas’ Kobe 9s,” Brunson recalled. “He literally brought them out of the locker room in his hand, and (said) here you go.”

At that time, Brunson was the reigning Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Illinois and well on his way to a second. That night, he watched former Bryant lieutenant Pau Gasol put up a double-double as the local Bulls rolled to a 113-93 victory.

After the game, Brunson went back to business, as he and Stevenson High School had a holiday tournament to win. Despite regulations recommending otherwise, Brunson not only had a gift but he had a de facto new weapon.

“”Everyone was like, ‘What are you going to do with them?’ I’m going to wear these the next game I play. We’re the same size. I’m wearing them,” he said. “Our high school had a rule that we couldn’t wear outside the team colors; I completely broke that. We were green and gold; I was wearing red. But we won the holiday tournament; I was wearing those shoes. Yeah, that was a cool moment. He just came out and said, ‘Here you go.'”

That holiday victory was the first of several tournament victories for Brunson: as a Villanova Wildcat, he later won two Big East Men’s Basketball Tournament titles at his future stomping grounds of Madison Square Garden and also earned two national championships.

Knicks fans only hope that Brunson will add to that trophy case soon: a journey that literally began in Bryant’s shoes has reached one of the most realistically hopeful Knicks seasons in quite some time, thanks in part to Brunson’s efforts at the top of the metropolitan rotation.

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