Four years ago, after the Lakers shipped Shaquille O'Neal to Miami, Allen, then a member of the Seattle SuperSonics, was quoted the day after a preseason game against the Lakers as saying that Bryant would be more selfish sans Shaq.
"He's going to be very selfish," Allen said. "And he feels like he needs to show this league and the people of this country that he is better without Shaq. He can win championships without Shaq. So offensively, he's going to jump out and say, 'I can average 30 points. I can still carry the load on this team.'
"I think the point production is not going to be so much what people are going to look at because [Tracy] McGrady did it in Orlando, Allen [Iverson] did it in Philly. Can you win a championship? I think that's the question. Carrying guys on your back and making everybody better."
Bryant didn't take kindly to the comments.
"Don't put me and him in the same sentence," Bryant retorted later that month, prior to an exhibition rematch between the Sonics and Lakers.
They were harsh words, considering Allen is an eight-time All-Star and a likely Hall of Famer. Yesterday, Allen wanted no part of rehashing his verbal skirmish with Bryant, but when given the opportunity, he didn't recant.
"Honestly, I said it and I just moved on from it," said Allen. "I didn't make a big deal about it myself. If one person says it, then somebody is going to perpetuate it and grow it and make it more than what it is. We're in 2008. It's a nonissue now."
Well, perhaps Bryant simply misinterpreted what Allen was trying to say. Maybe the remarks weren't intended to be pejorative.
"That's how he took them. I didn't have to say anything more about it," said Allen. "[It happened] at a time when I'm playing in the Western Conference, and I just finished playing them in the preseason.
"So, obviously, the teams that you play and that you see regularly, you have more of a feel for them, so it was that at the time. We're in a different part of our careers and our lives right now. I've got to take care of what's going on with myself and this team."
