George Hill becomes Spurs second best Kobe stopper

George Hill is known by his teammates as one of the most unassuming players on the team. So it was more than a little out of character when he got into Kobe Bryant’s face and jawed with him with 4:49 left in the second quarter.

“I just wanted him to know that you might be an NBA All-Star and the MVP, but I won’t back down from anybody,” Hill said.

The Lakers took the lead on the ensuing possession, but Hill’s willingness to stand up to the league’s foremost scorer and trash talker got a point across to his teammates.
“George probably doesn’t look at it as inspirational for that $2,000 coming out of his pocket,” Spurs guard Gary Neal said. “But I think it starts with Pop (Coach Gregg Popovich.) That’s where it started from. George just continued to go forward from there.”

Tony Parker joked that it was the second-best defensive performance against Bryant he has seen.

“You want me to get in a fight with Bruce? Bruce is No. 1,” Parker said about the efforts of legendary Kobe-stopper Bruce Bowen. “This is the second-best effort.”