Kobe's pep talk to A-Rod: 'Say hell with it'

Kobe Bryant may not always be the easiest teammate to get along with, but he's doing his best at being a good pal to slumping Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez, who he became friends with on a commercial shoot years ago.

Speaking after last night's exhibition loss against the Utah Jazz, Bryant told ESPN Los Angeles that he called Rodriguez several days ago to give him a Stuart Smalley style pep talk. It wasn't exactly along the lines of "You're good enough, you're smart enough, and doggone it, people like you," but it was certainly close.

"I just say to him, 'You're Alex Rodriguez. You're A-Rod. You're one of the best to ever do it,'" Bryant said. "I think sometimes he kind of forgets that and wants to try to do the right thing all the time. Which is the right team attitude to have. But other times you really have to put your head down and say, 'Hell with it' and just do your thing."

Bryant also alluded that Rodriguez may suffer from a bit of a confidence problem, something he, Kobe Bryant, winner of five NBA titles, certainly has never felt.

"We're different," Bryant said. "But you're talking about, 'He's one of the best to ever play.' I think really the difference is, sometimes he forgets he's the best. ... Where, I don't."

I'm pretty sure that we need a weekly podcast consisting only of motivational phone calls from a dominant Bryant to a downtrodden A-Rod. If only the Lakers star had made a habit of this years ago.

"Hey bro, it's Kobe. Where are you?" "I'm at a magazine photo shoot. About to do a pose of myself in the mirror kissing myself." "That sounds wack, dude. You're Alex Rodriguez. You're A-Rod. Scrap that idea and tell the photographer you're going with the all-white wardrobe theme instead."