As the self-proclaimed "Kobe Stopper," Ruben Patterson made a startling claim about the origin of his nickname Wednesday.

"Shawn Kemp really started that," he said.

But with the power of the Internet and the perpetuating of that title in the media, those words probably will always be linked to the new Clipper, whether it was self-proclaimed or Kemp-proclaimed.

"I'm sick of it now," Patterson said of the nickname. "It's worldwide. I hear it everywhere I travel. The first thing people say is `Kobe Stopper.' They don't say Ruben Patterson. They say `Kobe Stopper.' But I tell everyone that me and Kobe are good friends now, and he actually tried to get me to the Lakers two years ago."