Kobe reminisces old battles with Celtics ahead of final meeting

When Kobe Bryant finally hangs up his sneakers in two weeks, he will have played the entirety of his 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Naturally, that makes the Boston Celtics his bitter rivals. Having split two hotly contested Finals with Beantown in 2008 and 2010, Bryant knows his foe all too well.

Ahead of Sunday's final battle with the Celtics, Bryant showed nothing but respect for the opposition.

"Now having a chance to be a part of (the rivalry) and playing them one more time, and seeing that green? It’s extremely important," Bryant told Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald, "It’s special - so, so special."

Since he spent much of his childhood overseas, Bryant grew up on the bitter Lakers-Celtics rivalry waged by Larry Bird and Magic Johnson because those were the only teams that were broadcasted. The two historic franchises traded eight championships during the 80's.

"I grew up on Lakers and Celtics. When I was growing up in Italy there were no NBA games on, nothing was global, so all you could watch was Celtics and the Lakers, and that whole rivalry."

Bryant would himself become a part of the storied duel, and he credits the loss in 2008 for his growth as a champion.

"It forced me to be a better leader," Bryant said. "In 2008 what I learned was that my leadership, I felt, was what failed us as a team. I had built our team to be a very strong, cohesive unit, but I hadn’t built our team to beat the toughness of the Celtics. It forced me to find a balance between building a cohesive and positive environment, and yet building a very tough, tested team. It pushed me to be a better leader."

He would eventually get his revenge in 2010 for what turned out to be Bryant's fifth and final championship.