Lynden High School assistant basketball coach Mike Elsner ran basketball camps for Kobe Bryant and was a friend of the former Laker star. Bryant died in a helicopter crash Sunday in Calabasas, CA.
Elsner told KPUG in a text message he “would either see the Lakers in Seattle or several times went to LA to watch. On a few occasions I got to go to practice and into the locker room before and after.”
The photo you’re looking at is Elsner with Bryant holding Elsner’s son (also named Kobe). Kobe Elsner went on to be a starter on Lynden’s back-to-back state championship teams and is currently a freshman point guard at the University of Puget Sound.
