The recent death of Kobe Bryant took the world by storm, and has left fans and the public stunned. The NBA legend was the holder of five championship rings, along with many other accolades within the sport of basketball, fashion, and was just starting his career in Hollywood having won an Oscar for his short film “Dear Basketball”. He was tragically killed in a helicopter crash on Sunday, January 26, 2020, along with his daughter Gianna, and seven others.
Though Bryant brought controversy to the game when he began his career, the player soon fought through this bad boy reputation to become an ambassador of the game, as well as one of the greatest basketball players in NBA history.
Here are the 10 greatest moments of the man, the myth, and the legend, Kobe Bryant.
Alley-Oop Finish
When Shaquille O’Neal joined Kobe and the Lakers in 1996, one could not begin to imagine the history that the two would create for the sport. The duo entered their first NBA Finals in 2000, after taking seven games to defeat the Portland Trailblazers in the NBA Western Conference Finals. The last game was legendary, with the infamous alley-oop pass from Bryant to Shaq, which won them the game. The team went on from there to win their first NBA title and Kobe Bryan’ts first championship ring.
Three Titles in a Row
Kobe and Shaq dominated the NBA as teammates. In 2002, the Lakers swept the New Jersey Nets and won their third NBA title in a row. This made them one of only five teams to accomplish this task, and also the last team to do so.
Positive Coaching Alliance
Scoring 62 Points in Three Quarters
In 2005, Bryant was able to score 62 points within the first three quarters of the game with the Dallas Mavericks. The Lakers won with 112 points versus the Mavericks’ 90, even with Kobe deciding to sit out the fourth quarter. This specific game actually made history. It was the first time a single player had outscored the opposing team within three quarters, with Kobe scoring 62 and the Mavericks scoring 61.
81 Point Game
Perhaps the greatest performance of Kobe Bryant occurred in 2006. This is the time when he had accumulated 81 points in a game against the Toronto Raptors, giving the Lakers another win with a 122-104 game. This was one of the highest scoring totals in the history of the NBA, with Wilt Chamberlain holding the mantel after scoring 100 points in 1962 against the New York Knicks. However, today’s basketball games are much more faster and competitive then in Chamberlain’s day, so one could still argue that Kobe had the better performance in this regard.
Olympic Gold
The NBA was abuzz in 2004 after the U.S. had won a Bronze Medal in the Olympics. Bryant, along with other NBA stars, including LeBron James, decided to commit to win a Gold medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. They came through on their promise, and defeated Spain in a 118-107 win. Kobe also proceeded to win another gold at the London Olympics four years later.
Back-to-Back Post Shaq
After Shaquille O’Neal left the Lakers to play with the Miami Heat, the Lakers had a rough patch due to his absence underneath the rim. It wasn’t for long though, and in 2009 and 2010, they returned to winning titles back to back. Bryant was on top of his game, with 23 points scored in an 83-79 win against the Boston Celtics, which all took place in the final Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals. This championship gave Kobe his fifth overall win, and was his last championship.
Achilles Tendon Injury Free Throws
There were many injuries that Bryant endured in the last years of his basketball career. The worst was possibly in 2013, when he tore his Achilles tendon in the last quarter against the Golden State Warriors. After he was fouled, Bryant proceeded to limp his way to the free throw line, making two more points for the Lakers before he left the match. These shots became very significant for the Lakers, as they later won the game by exactly two points.
Surpassing Michael Jordan’s Scoring Record
In late 2014, Bryant finally surpassed the legendary Michael Jordan in all time points scored. This occurred 26 points into the Minnesota Timberwolves game, which the Lakers eventually won 100-94. However, his total 33,643 points are still fourth behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, and LeBron James.
Final Game
In late 2015, Bryant officially announced to the world that he would retire at the end of that season. The basketball superstar ended his career fashionably though, with a total of 60 points during his final game with the Utah Jazz. This gave the Lakers a 101-96 point victory. After the game, Bryant gave the world a very touching and inspiration speech that could go down as one of the best in NBA history.
Retirement of Jerseys
@saraharodman
Kobe Bryant has often been called the best Laker play in the history of the NBA. At the end of 2017, he was honored by the NBA and the Lakers in a tremendous show of gratitude. His former team decided to retire both of his jerseys, No. 8 and No. 24. This truly showed what a great contribution Bryant had made to the Lakers, and the NBA overall. After he passed away, both of his jerseys were lit up during the entire 2020 Grammy Awards which was held at the Staples Center, the home that Kobe built.
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