Kobe Bryant's former bodyguard compared working for him and other NBA stars: "Kobe was a sit outside-the-gate person"

Before he became a security executive, Kevin Tucker was a personal bodyguard for NBA players. He protected the likes of Reggie Miller , Jermaine O'Neal, Tracy McGrady, and Kobe Bryant .

Tucker made special mention of the Los Angeles Lakers superstar among the stars he worked with. Kevin said being Kobe's bodyguard was interesting because, while he developed a friendship with his clients, things were purely professional with The Black Mamba.

"Reggie would invite you over, send a car over, have you come into his house," he said . "Kobe was a sit-outside-the-gate person."

Kobe was a private guy

Tucker wasn't your ordinary bodyguard. He had a Criminal Justice degree from Northern Arizona University. In 1987, he investigated sexual harassment cases within the Arizona state government while working for the Office of the Governor.

He then became a DEA agent for ten years before meeting NBA agent Arm Tellem in 2001, who asked him if he wanted to work as Kobe's personal bodyguard. Kevin was a huge basketball fan, so he said yes. Although he had never developed a personal relationship with Bryant, he understood how the legendary guard acted.

"I know his image is negative, but he's not a bad guy," he added. "You just have to understand he needed his space. He was a private guy. It was all about basketball with him."

Tucker didn't get to work that long with Kobe because, in 2002, Bryant's wife Vanessa took over his husband's day-to-day operations, including his security detail. Neither Vanessa nor Kobe informed him that he was fired, but he just heard that the Lakers legend got a new bodyguard, and that was it.

Tucker had a successful career in sports security

Although his first gig as a bodyguard did not end well, Tucker ended up having a successful career in sports security. After his work with Kobe, the Phoenix Suns asked him to help Stephon Marbury after the latter was arrested for DUI.

Following that season, then-team president Bryan Colangelo hired Tucker to work for the Suns. From September 2002 to July 2010, Kevin was team's Director of Security.

Two months after leaving the Suns, he held the same position for the Portland Trail Blazers for almost five years. Tucker then was appointed as the Director of Security for the NBA Players Association and later as the Senior Security Director of the NFL's Los Angeles Rams.

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