Remembering when Arenas trash-talked Kobe and paid the price originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
December 17, 2006, was one of the greatest nights of Gilbert Arenas' career. He went off for a career-high 60 points to set the Wizards' franchise scoring record for a single game and beat Kobe Bryant's Lakers in the process.
So naturally, Arenas was feeling good enough to talk trash to Bryant himself.
"Once [Arenas] scored 60, Gil got a little mouthy," Brendan Haywood said Wednesday on Wizards Postgame Live. "We're on the team plane and Caron Butler was talking to Kobe, and Gil starts talking trash to Kobe. He tells Kobe, 'If you the Black Mamba, then my new nickname is the Black Mongoose.'"
For those that aren't aware, a black mamba is a poisonous snake, and a mongoose is a typical predator for poisonous snakes. Arenas was a star in his own right, but to take a shot like that at Kobe was a bold move.
According to Haywood, Bryant made sure to hold on to that comment for two months until the Lakers saw the Wizards again.
"Kobe said, 'Keep that same energy when [I] come to D.C.,'" Haywood said. "I thought Kobe forgot. Two months later, I'm not even thinking about it, I put my hand out, [Kobe] walked right past me. He did not shake anybody's hand, he walked up to Gil, slapped him on his butt and said, 'Remember you asked for this, and make sure you guard me the way I'm gonna guard you.' He gave us 45, the meanest points I've ever seen. He pulled the 360 dunk with the airplane, he did everything.
"So, I've been a part of Gil's 60, and I saw how that 60 translated into what could have been 60 for Kobe Bryant, but he didn't have to play in the fourth quarter," he said. "That's how bad that man was that night."
Bryant didn't exactly get to 45, he only got to a measly 39 points against the Wizards two months later in an easy win for the Lakers, though it's easy to understand how 39 points from Kobe can feel like a lot more when you're on the other sideline.
Now, 15 years later, Bradley Beal joins Arenas atop the Wizards' single-game scoring throne with a 60-piece of his own against the Sixers Wednesday night. His 60-point game didn't result in a win, however, so he'll have plenty to think about the next time the Sixers step on the floor against him.
Tune in at 6:30 PM to NBC Sports Washington on Friday for complete coverage of the Wizards' next game against the Boston Celtics.
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