At the end of this season, Kobe Bryant is put the finishing touch on one of basketball's greatest legacies. For 20 years, he put on clinics in scoring, winning and leadership.
And trash talking.
Bryant will not leave the NBA without addressing his guidelines for future trash talkers. During a press conference to discuss his retirement announcement, Bryant recalled a recent story in Portland when a young player chirped him.
Rule: "If you weren't born when I started playing, you can't talk trash," Bryant said.
Kobe talks about a young player in Portland trash talking him pic.twitter.com/fLtPDdU82D
— CJ Fogler (@cjzero) November 30, 2015
Hopefully, the player really did say, "Yes, sir."
Bryant made his NBA debut in Nov. 3, 1996. No current NBA player was born after that date. But next year's NBA Draft will likely bring in rookies of such age. The league's current youngest player, Devin Booker, was born on Oct. 30, 1996 -- just four short days before Kobe began his impressive career.
Although Bryant wants respect, too much of it makes him feel uncomfortable. On Sunday, Bryant also discussed a recent game when a Piston player invaded the team captains' meeting to catch a glimpse of Bryant. The player didn't even peek out from behind his own captain, Andre Drummond. He just blindly shook Bryant's hand.
With a birthday of Aug. 23, 1978, Bryant, 37, is currently the league's 11th oldest player. Andre Miller is the league's oldest, born March 19, 1976.
Bryant is the oldest Laker by a little more than a year. Metta World Peace recently celebrated his 36th birthday on Nov. 13.
It is time for one of Los Angeles' youngest grandpas to call it quits.
Kobe on the youth of the Lakers' roster: "I feel like their grandfather. I'm like a triple O.G."
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) November 30, 2015
Bryant's game may be in decline, but his smack-talk remains as strong as ever.
-- Follow Jeffrey Eisenband on Twitter @JeffEisenband.