Lakers Rumors: Kobe Bryant Wants Jeremy Lin To Become Great Defensive Player

Los Angeles Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant has another mission other than leading his team back to contention and that is to turn point guard Jeremy Lin into a defensive powerhouse this coming season.

Coming off grueling rehabilitation to get back to his top form, Bryant has been pushing his teammates to go beyond their limits as they prepare for a very tough grind this upcoming NBA season.

At 36-years old, Bryant has apparently welcomed his new role as a mentor to his young teammates as his shares work ethic and every bit of knowledge he learned from 18 years of playing in the National Basketball Association.

Nick Young, who averaged a team-high 18 points per game last season, has credited Bryant in the evolution of his game, while small forward Wesley Johnson continues to get defensive tutorial from Bryant since last summer.

Now, the Black Mamba has accepted a new mission by challenging the 26-year old Lin to become a great perimeter stopper in the game.

Defense has always been most scrutinized part of Lin's game since he set foot on an NBA court. However, both Lakers head coach Byron Scott and Bryant really believed that Lin has the skills-set to become a really good player on the defensive end of the floor.

"Jeremy's biggest challenge, which he loves, is that I'm really going to challenge him to be a great defensive player-because he can," Bryant said in an interview via Bleacher Report. "He has the speed, he has the length, he has the size. He has never had to take on that challenge, but I think he can be a great defensive player."

Over his five-year NBA career, Lin has already played alongside some of the best scorers in the game like New York Knicks star Carmelo Anthony and Houston Rockets' James Harden. However, he admitted that he has never seen someone like Bryant who really has a very deep understanding of the game.

Lin also called it a blessing to have Bryant around both as his Laker teammate and mentor, adding that the Black Mambas is helping him a lot to become a better player on both ends of the floor.

"He's challenging me to expand my perspective. I think that's really important, and that's something that I love doing. It's a blessing that he's here in the same locker room."