NBA finals MVP Kobe Bryant told host Conan O'Brien on "The Tonight Show" on Wednesday that coach Phil Jackson had the Lakers meditate prior to games, the Los Angeles Times reported.
"He said, 'You're a frog on a lily pad . . . ' I'm not making this stuff up," he said.
On a more serious note, Bryant told O'Brien, "It's incredible to see all that work, all that intensity, come to fruition. It's awesome."
Bryant and O'Brien, who earlier this year replaced Jay Leno as "Tonight" host, exchanged gifts — O'Brien getting game-worn signed sneakers and Bryant being honored by a 25-foot golden statue of a pharaoh from the Universal Studios lot, the Times reported.
O'Brien put the statue in Bryant's studio to make the Lakers star "feel like a king," the Times added.
Bryant led the Los Angeles Lakers to their 15th NBA championship on Sunday with a five-game victory over the Orlando Magic.
Earlier Wednesday, Bryant will join the rest of the Lakers at a victory parade and rally from Staples Center to the Coliseum in Los Angeles.
PBT: Boston's Rajon Rondo continues to be named in trade talks, which is madness. The Celtics guard creates offense and makes everyone around him better, which was evident in Sunday's win over the Bulls.
Paul Pierce has been around long enough to know what Rajon Rondo's performance can mean for the aging Boston Celtics.
Slideshow |
A Tinseltown NBA finals Take a visual tour of the celebration of the Lakers’ NBA championship, plus images from the five-game win over the Magic. NBCSports.com |
Special feature |
ProBasketballTalk tweets |
|
Source: Twitter. For more, follow @basketballtalk. |
Video: NBA from NBC Sports |
Knicks, Lin still streaking Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni and point guard Jeremy Lin discuss the team and Lin's recent success. |
Slideshow |
more photos |
Special feature |
Who will be MVP? Interactive: Rank each player on a scale of 0 to 10 (10 = best player, 0 = barely worthy of consideration). NBCSports.com |
Slideshow |
more photos |