“He said something to me I’ll never forget…The afterlife ain't what people make it up to be” – 2X NBA champion reveals he had Kobe Bryant in his dreams several times, narrates a paranoid dream

Kobe Bryant passed away more than two years ago, but his presence continues to be alive in the current generation of NBA players. Even athletes from across different sports have toasted Bryant for his inspiration in helping them overcome certain adversities.

Former NBA player Lamar Odom, however, had an entirely different experience with his former teammate. Here’s what he had to say on the "Club Shay Shay" podcast with three-time Super Bowl winner Shannon Sharpe:

“He came to me in dreams, too. When I was on the Big Brother house, I was there for 26 days. He came to me in four dreams. The last dream, it was real vivid.

“He said something to me I’'ll never forget: ‘The afterlife ain't what people make it up to be.’ … I didn’t know how to take that, it stuck with me.”

In his dream, the former teammates were shooting hoops and were intensely going at it when “KB24” suddenly said those words.

Lamar Odom added that there are a few reasons he could think of why Kobe Bryant said those words in his dreams. Bryant could have missed his family, particularly his daughters. He could have been longing to do more in this world or was simply giving Odom a piece of advice.

According to the two-time champion, the advice could have been about living life without regrets as anything could happen at any given moment. It’s for this reason that Odom is focusing his energy on the things he could do rather than those he can do nothing about.

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Kobe Bryant had another message for Lamar Odom in a previous interview

Lamar Odom (left) and Kobe Bryant during their time with the LA Lakers

Before appearing on Shannon Sharpe’s podcast, Lamar Odom also had an interview with TMZ Sports. As he and Kobe Bryant remained friends after the latter’s retirement, he was naturally asked about the beloved Laker.

Odom narrated what Bryant said to him in that specific dream:

“He’s just talking to me all the time. ‘Hang in there. Keep fighting.’ A lot of s**t.”

Back in 2015, Odom nearly died due to a drug overdose. The former LA Lakers player, who was in a comatose state during that time, later revealed the seriousness of his situation. According to him, the doctors weren’t positive he’d survive the ordeal.

Although he eventually healed enough to get out of the hospital after a three-month stay, Odom’s struggles are far from over.

The fourth pick of the 1999 NBA Draft gave a candid response to an interview by People about the effects of the drug overdose.

“I have horrible memory loss,” he told the publication. “And my long-term memory was affected as well. Athletically, my balance is poo. I was shocked how weak my body became.”

Perhaps “The Black Mamba” is somehow reaching out to Odom through dreams about the importance of never giving up.

Few sportspeople are more qualified than Kobe Bryant to speak about resilience of that kind. The Hall of Famer’s career was partly defined by his unrelenting quest to overcome any obstacles thrown his way.