Devin Booker says Kobe Bryant inspired him to score 70 points

Devin Booker became the youngest player to ever score more than 60 points when he dropped 70 on the Boston Celtics Friday. The 20-year old guard is also just the sixth player in NBA history to score at least 70 points, joining a list that includes names like Wilt Chamberlain and Kobe Bryant.

It turns out the latter’s scoring prowess may have had something to do with Booker’s explosion.

“I’ve seen an interview with Kobe where he said what separated him from a lot of people was that he thought everyone thought 30 points was a lot,” Booker told the media following the game. “He said he never set a limit for himself, and that’s always sticks in my head. He said he’d score 100 if he could, so he never had a limit and I don’t put a limit on anything.”

The respect is mutual, as Bryant demonstrated a year ago when he gave the then-rookie Booker signed shoes and told him to “be legendary.” On Friday, Booker just took his advice, and Bryant liked what he saw:

Harrison Faigen is co-host of the Locked on Lakers podcast (subscribe here), and you can follow him on Twitter at @hmfaigen.