Kobe Bryant On Pau Gasol: “I Need Him To Be Black Swan”

If you haven’t seen Darren Aronofsky‘s magnum opus Black Swan yet, you should probably take a sick/personal day and hit up your local theatre. But for those of you that have, you’ll love the fact the Kobe Bryant is drawing references from the flick when giving advice to teammate Pau Gasol.

From Kevin Ding of The Orange County Register:

“Even when he was in Memphis and he was the go-to guy, he was always very nice,” Bryant said of Gasol. “Very white swan. I need him to be black swan. Be an (expletive) sometimes.”

Never will the gentle Gasol smile that devilish smile – “because it’s not his nature,” Bryant said – but that doesn’t mean the long-necked Gasol can’t flap black swan wings on the basketball court or the big screen.

Did the advice work? Well, Gasol finished the game last night with 26 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks, so you be the judge. Also, mad props to Trey Kerby of The Basketball Jones for the amazing illustration.

What do you think?

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