Kobe Bryant is apparently a huge admirer of Harry Potter.  (Come on – who isn’t?)  He’s such a massive fan that his dog’s name has come from the series.  What do you think it is?  Bellatrix? Firebolt? Sirius Black (Lab)?

Recently Kobe’s Lakers played the Denver Nuggets, and he sat on the bench for the second half because of pain in his right shoulder.  To stay entertained, he made a deal with some kids behind him that if they could his dog’s name, he would give them the sneakers right off of his feet.

“They wanted to know what the name of my pet dog was so I gave them a clue,” Bryant told The Denver Post. “I said, ‘It’s in a [Harry] Potter film.’ So every time, they threw out like 15 names. The deal was if they got it, I’d give them my shoes. And they got it.”

Did you?  It’s Crucio, after the Cruciatus Curse.  (In case you’re not familiar, it’s one of the three Unforgivable Curses – this one is used to cause pain so people will give in to an evil witch or wizard’s will.)

But there doesn’t appear to be anything unforgivable about this cutie… unless he waits until he’s right next to you to shake off!