Ray Nicholson Recounts His 'Traumatic Experience' Getting Pantsed by Kobe Bryant at a Lakers Game
Ray Nicholson's NBA stories are unmatched.
The 33-year-old actor looked back on some of the most thrilling moments he's experienced while sitting courtside with his father — NBA superfan Jack Nicholson — during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Wednesday, March 12.
Nicholson first shared a "traumatic experience" that brought him to tears at a game when he was just six years old. "I was with my best friend, Beau, who was also six, and Kobe Bryant and Nick Van Exel pantsed us," he revealed. "Pantsed us before the game."
Nicholson said he and Beau "started crying" after the incident. "They felt really bad," he added of Van Exel and the late Bryant. "They actually came up and apologized, and were like, 'No, you're a part of the team,' " he shared.
Related: All About Jack Nicholson's Look-Alike Son (and Fellow Scream King) Ray Nicholson
Nicholson shared a second courtside story during his interview with Kimmel, which was a much more positive experience for the father-son actors — despite the story involving a 6-foot-11 Kevin Garnett barreling into him.
Setting the scene, Nicholson said: "2010, Game 7, Lakers-Celtics, fourth quarter, tight game."
The Borderline actor recalled how his dad told him, "You're sitting courtside, watch the player not the ball."
Related: Ray Nicholson Loved Playing a Complicated Bad Guy in Novocaine: 'You Don't Know Who to Root for' (Exclusive)
But a young Nicholson couldn't help but watch the ball when it came near him during the end of the game. "The ball is bouncing right towards me and I'm thinking I'm going to touch the ball in Game 7," Nicholson said.
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Kimmel then played the clip of Garnett falling into the younger Nicholson, perfectly missing his father. "He's on top of me, shaking me, like, 'Are you okay?'," Nicholson recalled, noting that he remembers Garnett being "very sweaty" during the interaction.
"Well, at least he didn't pull your pants down," Kimmel joked.
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