Kobe Bryant to auction off a game of H-O-R-S-E

Time and time again, Kobe Bryant exerts his scoring dominance and demeans his opponents afterward. He does it in games. He does it in practice. That’s what makes Bryant who he is.

So with Bryant currently offering the chance for fans to play him in a game of H-O-R-S-E, there’s little doubt the Lakers’ star will bring the same fiery demeanor.

But the stakes will be different this time. Bryant is starting up an auction from June 4 to June 11 that will allow fans to bid on playing him July 2 in Santa Barbara, with proceeds benefiting the Kobe & Vanessa Bryant Family Foundation’s Youth Homelessness Initiative. Fans don’t have to worry about guarding Bryant since they’re just playing H-O-R-S-E. Bryant will also surely act gracefully to the fan as he signs autographs and poses for pictures.

But once the game starts, Bryant probably won’t soften his competitiviness. One, the event will be videotaped. Most importantly, Bryant won’t allow a fan to win just to be nice. That’s not his nature. This time, though, Bryant’s channeling that competitiveness into a good cause.

It’s the same thing he did after wearing a plastic mask to protect his tender injured nose for 11 games this season. Bryant raised $67,100 for his family foundation and homeless initiative by auctioning off his mask earlier this month. This happened mere weeks after Bryant jokingly wondered if “anybody’s dumb enough to buy that sweaty mask.”

It’s also safe to predict that plenty are dumb enough to want to challenge Bryant to a game of H-O-R-S-E, even if it leads to the Lakers’ star humiliating them.

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