Who Kobe Bryant picked as his favorite between Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer

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The late Kobe Bryant will forever be remembered as one of the greatest basketball players of all time.

Winning five NBA championships, Bryant wrote his name into the history books.

The former LA Laker spent time with several other G.O.A.T.s from different sports over the years.

Back in 2019, a year before his tragic passing, Bryant was asked to name his favorite player from tennis’ ‘big three’ of Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal.

Kobe Bryant picked Novak Djokovic as his favorite player

During an ESPN interview at the 2019 US Open, Bryant shared his thoughts on the G.O.A.T. debate.

“The holy trinity of tennis players.

“Well, Novak is my guy; we’ve had a relationship for a long time.

“My teammate Pau Gasol and Rafael, that was a whole thing. Federer sent me a racket when I was playing…”

He then shared the details of a conversation he’d had with Djokovic about competing as they grew older.

“There is a lot of preparation involved in that and studying the game. Especially when you are playing against players that are quicker and younger, you’ve got to study them to understand what those tendencies are so you can put yourself in those positions before that shot ever comes,” he said.

“So, it’s a lot of preparation. Me and Novak talked about it quite at length, because he was going through a process of ‘physically, I am not what I used to be, so how did you adjust and change your game?

“We talked about it for a while, and having the acceptance of an athlete to say I’m not what I used to be.”

Six years on, Djokovic is still competing on the ATP Tour, as he continues to prove that age really is just a number.

How did Novak Djokovic perform at Grand Slams this year?

Aged 38, Djokovic enjoyed a remarkable Grand Slam campaign in 2025.

First, he travelled to Melbourne for the Australian Open with his new coach, Andy Murray.

With the Brit in his corner, Djokovic reached the semifinals, picking up a memorable win over Carlos Alcaraz along the way.

He failed in his bid to reach the final, however, retiring with an injury against Alexander Zverev one set into their semifinal match.

Returning to Grand Slam action in Paris, following his split from Murray, Djokovic reached another semifinal, getting his revenge over Zverev in the quarters.

Standing between Djokovic and a place in the final was Italy’s Jannik Sinner, the world number one.

Djokovic played some great tennis on Court Philippe Chatrier, but couldn’t keep up with his younger rival.

The Serb lost in straight sets, exiting the French Open at the semifinal stage.

Before the season began, many thought Wimbledon might be Djokovic’s best shot at Grand Slam number 25, and those predictions didn’t look bad at all, one week in.

Again, Djokovic reached the last four before facing Sinner once more.

Suffering his third semifinal defeat of the season, Djokovic lost to Sinner, 3-6, 3-6, 4-6 on Centre Court.

Playing the fourth and final Grand Slam event of the year, the 38-year-old qualified for the semifinals, where he met Alcaraz, the man he beat in Melbourne.

Djokovic couldn’t repeat his Australian Open heroics, as he lost another Grand Slam semifinal in straight sets.

Despite failing to win a single set in all four semifinals he played, it shouldn’t be overlooked just how impressive it was for Djokovic to perform as well as he did this year.

Only time will tell if he can produce more of the same in 2026.

Djokovic will return searching for his elusive 25th Grand Slam at the Australian Open, which begins on Sunday, January 18.