Welcome in to the full recap of the Lakers' matchup vs. the Utah Jazz, the final game of Kobe Bryant in his 20 year career where Kobe goes out in style, the only way that Kobe know when to go out. Kobe went out guns blazing, putting up one more 60 point game and rallying the Lakers to a 96-101 win.
There are so many adjectives to describe this finale: amazing, awesome, fantastic, legendary, unbelievable. I said it during the season, Kobe Bryant was not the same player as he once was, but you can't deny the competitive drive and the will to win. The heart of a champion was still beating (a reference to my old Kobe vignette) and Kobe delivered one final performance for the ages. 60 points, hitting the go-ahead jumper for the Lakers to get the win against the Jazz who were already eliminated from playoff contention with Houston's win today, but they still competed their butts off. Hats off to them. But you can't write a better ending than this.
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Kobe Bryant, 60 points, 22-50 shooting. Are you kidding me? 37 years old. A major achilles injury, multiple knee and shoulder injuries throughout the season at the twilight of his career. He struggled all season long and he puts up this kind of performance in his final game! As a longtime Laker fan, we know Kobe is capable to pull off a performance like this, but at 37 years old! I guess Father Time allowed him to go off for this one game. Every shot Kobe put up, I was on my feet like I was a kid/teenager during his prime and during the championship years. Yes he started slow, yes he missed a lot of shots, but he single-handedly got this team to a victory. His arsenal was on full display, blowing by defenders, hitting impossible shots, hitting impossible three pointers, something Kobe did night in and night out during his prime. Awesome, vintage performance from the Black Mamba! And I enjoyed every moment of it.
Jordan Clarkson, 12 points, 7 rebounds, 6-10 shooting. I emphasized this on my halftime post that the Lakers' young players have to find a way to get involved. This storybook ending wouldn't have been possible without guys like Clarkson, who has been the overall constant among the young three of the Lakers. Clarkson made a couple of big buckets, clutch rebounds to give the Lakers and Kobe Bryant a shot at a victory. That and he honored Kobe with a 360 dunk of his own in the third quarter. Props to Clarkson for answering the bell.
Larry Nance, Jr., 8 points, 6 rebounds, 3-3 shooting. I've always looked at Nance as a high energy guy for the Lakers off the bench. When he gets involved, the Lakers get a spark. Nance displayed a couple of highlight dunks to rile up the Staples Center crowd and give the Lakers new life and he hustled his butt off out there to get to the ball. Solid play from Nance.
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I am going to let the negatives fly. Despite how bad the Lakers started off this game and how they were down for the most part, getting the win for Kobe was all that matters. If they did lose, of course there would've been negatives to note out. But, I'll let this pass.
Conclusion
For the Lakers, this season has been atrocious from the start, but us Laker fans were rewarded at the end to see Kobe Bryant have the game of his life one more time. His performance tonight brought us nostalgia. It brought us happiness, joy, and at the same time, tears that he's going to be gone next season. I've had a lot of memories of Kobe from my childhood to my teenage years and now to my adulthood. I've witnessed him rally the Lakers to a victory in game 4 of the 2000 NBA Finals without Shaq on the floor, drop 81 points against the Raptors, nail a game winner against the Phoenix Suns during the 1st round of the 2006 NBA Playoffs, drop 61 points at MSG, nail a 3-pointer in J.R. Smith's face in front of a hostile Denver crowd during the '09 Western Conference Finals, hit a total of 6 game winners during the '09-10 season, hit two free throws despite a ruptured achilles against the Warriors, and most of all, I've witnessed him help deliver 5 championships to the Lakers. He's added one more performance to my memories and I'll look back at this game for a long time. Thank You Kobe Bryant for giving me a lot of memories as a Laker fan. Someday, numbers 8 and 24 will be hung from the rafters and Staples Center will unveil a statue of you doing one of your most disrespectful poster dunks on another player (it could be Dwight). As tough as it was to see you play the last couple of seasons since the awful achilles injury, whether we've watched you live or on TV, there's no doubt that I and the rest of Laker Nation have enjoyed every single moment of you being on the court whether it's at Staples Center or on the road.
Thank You!
What are your memories of Kobe Bryant's 20-year career? Share in the comments below. A Season in Review post for the Lakers' 2015-16 season will be posted up sometime this week or next week depending on my schedule. I'll see you guys later.
Kobe! Kobe! Kobe! Kobe! Kobe!
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