"You will never beat me in a playoffs series" - Kobe Bryant made things personal after George Karl benched him in 1998 All-Star Game

Kobe Bryant had his fair share of rivalries throughout his two-decade-long NBA career. However, one team he seemed to constantly dominate was the Denver Nuggets. Interestingly, this had nothing to do with the organization itself, but the Nuggets' head coach, George Karl .

How did George Karl trigger Bryant?

It all started during the 1998 All-Star Game when a young Kobe had his first chance to face off against his idol, Michael Jordan. In his All-Star Game debut, the 19-year-old guard was hyped and gave it his all, dropping 18 points in 22 minutes and holding his own against the Chicago Bulls legend.

But when the fourth quarter rolled around, Karl, the coach of the West team, decided to bench the Los Angeles Lakers star despite fans at Madison Square Garden wanting to see him battle against MJ.

Ultimately, Mike ended up winning the All-Star Game MVP after registering 23 points, and KB24 walked away with a grudge that would last years.

Appearing on the "Knuckleheads" podcast, Bryant swore to get his revenge on the veteran coach, and he did just that every time his Purple and Gold faced the Nuggets in the postseason.

"George Karl, which later in years became my motivation when we played against Denver, to never let them win a playoff series because he didn't play me the whole fourth quarter of that game. Me and Mike went at it for three quarters, and then in the 4th quarter, the crowd is waiting for me to get back in there. He benches me the whole fourth," Bryant said . "So it was like, 'Ok. Ok. It's on sight. So when we played the Denver Nuggets in the playoffs, it was like, hold on. You're never, you will never, beat me in a playoffs series.'"

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Did Kobe live up to his promise?

While the pressure the 6'6" shooting guard built for himself was at an all-time high, he delivered every time he saw Karl standing on the other side of the court.

The first opportunity came in the 2008 playoffs, and Bryant led the Lakers to a sweep over the Nuggets in the first round, averaging 33.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 6.3 assists per game. In the 2009 Western Conference Finals, he was just as relentless, averaging 34.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 5.8 assists as the Lakers beat Denver in six games. Lastly, in the first round of the 2012 playoffs, "Black Mamba" again took care of business, averaging 29.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 5.0 assists, leading the Purple and Gold to a Game 7 victory.

Karl may have never anticipated the long-term consequences of benching a 19-year-old during his first All-Star Game, but his decision inadvertently created a lasting rivalry. And even though George said his decision wasn't personal—he even said some players demanded him to do it because they didn't want to play with Kobe—it was enough to get the sixth-winningest coach in NBA history into the bad books of one of the greatest competitors ever.

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