US forward LeBron James (L) chat with US guard Kobe Bryant (R) during the men’s preliminary round basketball match USA vs Nigeria of the London 2012 Olympic Games on August 2, 2012 at the basketball arena in London. AFP PHOTO / MARK RALSTON / AFP / MARK RALSTON
Kobe Bryant’s swan song from basketball will happen in the NBA and not even the Star Spangled Banner could sway his mind.
And without Bryant in Team USA, LeBron James is also considering skipping this year’s Olympics in Rio, according to Bleacher Report.
READ: James, Bryant share court; No mercy for Kobe in Cleveland farewell
James, a big fan of Bryant going up, wanted to accompany the Black Mamba into the Olympic sunset but with the Laker legend opting out there may not be no Rio appearance for both of them.
According to the sport site’s NBA sources, James was disappointed to learn the Olympics would not be Bryant’s final run on a basketball court.
READ: Kobe’s last, Toronto’s 1st as NBA All-Star goes outside US
Learning about Bryant’s impeding retirement “was truly sad” for James, he said in an earlier Associated Press report.
“I wanted to be just like him,” James said.
Bryant and James were teammates in the 2008 and 2012 teams that won gold medals in the Olympics and it was the Games that led to the closeness of the two future Hall of Famers.