A'ja Wilson has always shown deep respect for Kobe Bryant, often speaking highly about the late Los Angeles Lakers legend.

It was back on May 26, 2019, when Bryant brought his daughter Gianna Bryant and her AAU team to meet Wilson, something the Las Vegas Aces star described as an incredible experience.

Fast forward to 7 years, and in an interview clip shared on X on Saturday, A’ja Wilson looked back on that interaction and said, “You're talking about someone that is the GOAT of basketball.”

"Someone that you would hope that you could get a pinch of his mentality, his mindset in order to be great. And he was sitting there, having a conversation with me, telling me that my jump shot looks good A like that," the 29-year-old said.

Imagine your role model praising your game. And that’s exactly how A'ja Wilson felt after receiving a compliment from Kobe Bryant.

“Kobe Bryant said I had a nice fadeaway jumper. Not a lot of people had the opportunity to say that they met their role model… That moment was huge,” Wilson said while recalling the special interaction.

Wilson’s has never hidden her admiration for Bryant. In fact, showed it recently by wearing a customized T-shirt honoring her boyfriend Bam Adebayo, along with Bryant and Wilt Chamberlain, after Adebayo’s historic 83-point performance.

However, A'ja Wilson is an inspiration to Bam Adebayo herself

On March 10, 2026, Bam Adebayo passed Kobe Bryant for the second-most points ever scored in a single NBA game. He's now trailing only Wilt Chamberlain and his legendary 100-point game in 1962.

Meanwhile, A'ja Wilson is tied for the highest single-game scoring total in WNBA history with 53 points. So when SportsCenter's Malika Andrews asked Adebayo about who now has the "bragging rights," he shut it down.

"I'm just honoured to obviously be in the same conversation as somebody like that. Obviously, when you look at the accolades and what she's done, like, I don't think there's anybody else that's going to catch her," said A'ja Wilson's boyfriend.

"And if you do, good luck. But that's under 30. Yeah. So there's no bragging rights," he added.

Yet, what do you think of Kobe Bryant's praise for A'ja Wilson? Tell us if you agree in the comments.

Read more at the Air Jordan Chronicles!

Written by

Sauramita Debbarma

Edited by

Sagnik Bagchi