Kobe Bryant
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| No. 24 – Los Angeles Lakers |
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| Position | Shooting guard |
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| League | NBA |
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| Personal information |
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| Born | August 23, 1978 (age 35)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
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| Nationality | American |
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| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)[a] |
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| Listed weight | 205 lb (93 kg) |
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| Career information |
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| High school | Lower Merion
(Ardmore, Pennsylvania) |
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| NBA draft | 1996 / Round: 1 / Pick: 13th overall |
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| Selected by the Charlotte Hornets |
| Pro playing career | 1996–present |
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| Career history |
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| 1996–present | Los Angeles Lakers |
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| Career highlights and awards |
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- 5× NBA champion (2000–2002, 2009–2010)
- 2× NBA Finals MVP (2009–2010)
- NBA Most Valuable Player (2008)
- 15× NBA All-Star (1998, 2000–2013)
- 4× NBA All-Star Game MVP (2002, 2007, 2009, 2011)
- 2× NBA scoring champion (2006–2007)
- 11× All-NBA First Team (2002–2004, 2006–2013)
- 2× All-NBA Second Team (2000–2001)
- 2× All-NBA Third Team (1999, 2005)
- 9× NBA All-Defensive First Team (2000, 2003–2004,2006–2011)
- 3× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (2001–2002,2012)
- NBA All-Rookie Second Team (1997)
- NBA Slam Dunk Contest champion (1997)
- Los Angeles Lakers all-time leading scorer
- Sports Illustrated NBA All-Decade First Team (2000–2009)
- Naismith Prep Player of the Year (1996)
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| Stats at NBA.com |
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com |
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Bryant enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at
Lower Merion High School, where he was recognized as the top high school basketball player in the country. He declared his eligibility for the
NBA Draft upon graduation, and was selected with the 13th overall pick in the
1996 NBA Draft by the
Charlotte Hornets, then traded to the Los Angeles Lakers. As a rookie, Bryant earned himself a reputation as a high-flyer and a fan favorite by winning the 1997
Slam Dunk Contest.
At 34 years and 104 days of age, Bryant became the youngest player in league history to reach 30,000 career points. He is also the all-time leading scorer in Lakers franchise history. Since his second year in the league, Bryant has been selected to start every All-Star Game. He has won the
All-Star MVP Award four times (
2002,
2007,
2009, and
2011), tying him for the most All Star MVP Awards in NBA history. At the
2008 and
2012 Summer Olympics, he won
gold medals as a member of the
USA national team.
Sporting News and
TNT named Bryant the top NBA player of the 2000s.
In 2003, Bryant was
accused of sexual assault after having sex with a hotel employee in
Edwards, Colorado. In September 2004, prosecutors dropped the case after his accuser refused to testify. A civil suit was later filed and settled out of court.
Early years
Childhood and youth
Bryant started playing basketball when he was 3 years old,
[10] and his favorite team growing up was the Lakers.
[11] Bryant's grandfather would mail him videos of NBA games, which Bryant would study.
[11] At an early age he also learned to play soccer, and his favorite team is
AC Milan.
[12] He has said that if he had stayed in Italy, he would have tried to become a professional soccer player.
[12] Bryant is a big fan of former
FC Barcelona manager
Frank Rijkaard and player
Ronaldinho[13] as well as a fan of
Galatasaray.
[14] Upon Joe Bryant's retirement from playing basketball in 1991, the Bryant family moved back to the United States.
High school
Bryant's retired No.33 jersey and banner at the Lower Merion High School gym.
Bryant earned national recognition during a spectacular high school career at
Lower Merion High School located in the Philadelphia suburb of
Lower Merion. As a freshman, he played for the varsity basketball team.
[15] He became the first freshman in decades to start for Lower Merion's
varsity team, but the team finished with a poor 4–20 record.
[15][16] The following three years, the Aces compiled a 77–13 record, with Bryant playing all five positions.
[15] During his junior year, he averaged 31.1 points, 10.4 rebounds and 5.2 assists and was named Pennsylvania Player of the Year.
[17] College recruiters from across the country were lined up to recruit him after his breakout year.
[17] Duke,
North Carolina,
Villanovaand
Michigan were at the top of his list; however, when
Kevin Garnett went in the first round of the
1995 NBA Draft, he began considering going directly to the pros.
[17]
At
Adidas ABCD camp, Bryant earned the 1995 senior MVP award,
[18] while playing alongside future NBA teammate
Lamar Odom.
[19] While in high school, then 76ers coach
John Lucas invited Bryant to work out and scrimmage with the team, where he played one-on-one with
Jerry Stackhouse.
[20] In his senior year of high school, Bryant led the Aces to their first state championship in 53 years. During the run, he averaged 30.8 points, 12 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 4.0 steals, and 3.8 blocked shots in leading the Aces to a 31–3 record.
[21] Bryant ended his high school career as
Southeastern Pennsylvania's all-time leading scorer at 2,883 points, surpassing both
Wilt Chamberlain and
Lionel Simmons.
[22]
Bryant received several awards for his performance his senior year including being named
Naismith High School Player of the Year,
GatoradeMen's National Basketball Player of the Year, a
McDonald's All-American, and a
USA Today All-USA First Team player.
[23] Bryant's varsity coach, Greg Downer, commented that Bryant was "a complete player who dominates".
[21] In 1996, Bryant took
R&B singer
Brandy Norwood to his
senior prom,
[24] though the two were, and remain, just friends. Ultimately, however, the 17-year-old Bryant made the decision to go
directly into the NBA, only the sixth player in NBA history to do so.
[15] Bryant's news was met with a lot of publicity at a time when
prep-to-pro NBA players were not very common (Garnett being the only exception in 20 years).
[15] His
SAT score of 1080
[25] would have ensured his basketball scholarship to various top-tier colleges and Bryant has stated that if he had decided to go to college after high school, he would have attended
Duke University.
[26] In 2012, Bryant was honored as one of the 35 Greatest
McDonald's All-Americans.
[27]
NBA career
1996 NBA Draft
The first guard to ever be taken out of high school, Bryant was chosen as the 13th overall
draft pick by the
Charlotte Hornets in 1996.
[28] According to
Arn Tellem, Bryant's agent at the time, Bryant playing for the Charlotte Hornets was "an impossibility".
[29] However, Bill Branch, the Hornets' head scout at the time, said that the Hornets agreed to trade their draft selection to the Lakers before picking Bryant. The teams agreed to the trade the day before the draft and the Lakers did not tell the Hornets who to select until five minutes before the pick was made.
[30] Branch said that prior to the trade agreement, the Hornets never even considered drafting Bryant. Prior to the draft, Bryant had worked out in Los Angeles, in which he scrimmaged against former Lakers players
Larry Drew and
Michael Cooper, and according to then-Laker manager
Jerry West "marched over these people".
[31]On July 1, 1996, West traded his starting
center,
Vlade Divac, to the Hornets in exchange for Bryant's draft rights.
[32] Since he was still 17 at the time of the draft, his parents had to cosign his contract with the Lakers until he was able to sign his own when he turned 18 before the season began.
[33]
First three seasons (1996–99)
During
his rookie season, Bryant mostly came off the bench behind guards
Eddie Jones and
Nick Van Exel.
[34] At the time he became
the youngest player ever to play in an NBA game (18 years, 72 days; a record since broken by
Jermaine O'Neal and
Andrew Bynum), and also became the youngest NBA starter ever (18 years, 158 days).
[35][36] Initially, Bryant played limited minutes, but as the season continued, he began to see some more playing time. By the end of the season, he averaged 15.5 minutes a game. During the
All-Star weekend, Bryant was the winner of the 1997
Slam Dunk Contest, becoming the youngest player to be named the slam dunk champion at the age of 18.
[37] Bryant's performance throughout the year earned him a spot on the
NBA All Rookie second team with fellow bench teammate
Travis Knight.
[38] His final minutes of the season ended in disaster when he shot 4
air balls at crucial times in the game.
[21] He first missed a jumper to win the game in the 4th quarter and 3 three-pointers in overtime (2 of which would have tied the game in the final minute). With that the
Utah Jazz ended the
playoffs for the Lakers in the second round.
Shaquille O'Neal commented years later that "[Bryant] was the only guy who had the guts at the time to take shots like that."
[39][40]
In Bryant's
second season, he received more playing time and began to show more of his abilities as a talented young guard. As a result Bryant's point averages more than doubled from 7.6 to 15.4 points per game.
[41] Bryant would see an increase in minutes when the Lakers "played small", which would feature Bryant playing small forward alongside the guards he would usually back up.
[42] Bryant was the runner-up for the
NBA's Sixth Man of the Year Award,
[43] and through fan voting, he also became the youngest
NBA All-Starstarter in NBA history.
[44] He was joined by teammates Shaquille O'Neal,
Nick Van Exel, and
Eddie Jones, making it the first time since 1983 that four players on the same team were selected to play in the same All-Star Game. Bryant's 15.4 points per game was the highest of any non-starter in the season.
[45]
The
1998–99 season marked Bryant's emergence as a premiere guard in the league. With starting guards Nick Van Exel and Eddie Jones traded, Bryant started every game for the lockout-shortened 50-game season. During the season, Bryant signed a 6-year contract extension worth $70 million.
[45] This kept him with the Lakers until the end of the 2003–04 season. Even at an early stage of his career, sportswriters were comparing his skills to those of
Michael Jordan and
Magic Johnson.
[33][46][47] The playoff results, however, were no better, as the Lakers were
swept by the
San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Semifinals.
[48]
Three-peat (1999–2002)
Bryant was a member of the Lakers teams that won three consecutive NBA Championships from 2000 to 2002.
Bryant's fortunes would soon change when
Phil Jackson became coach for the Los Angeles Lakers in 1999.
[49] After years of steady improvement, Bryant became one of the premier
shooting guards in the league, earning appearances in the league's All-NBA,
[50] All-Star, and All-Defensive teams.
[51] The Los Angeles Lakers became true championship contenders under Bryant and
Shaquille O'Neal, who formed a legendary center-guard combination. Jackson utilized the
triangle offense he used to win six championships with the
Chicago Bulls, which would help both Bryant and O'Neal rise to the elite class of the NBA. The three resulting championships won consecutively in
2000,
2001, and
2002 further proved such a fact.
[52]
Bryant started the
1999–2000 season sidelined for six weeks due to an injury to his hand in a preseason game against the
Washington Wizards.
[53] With Bryant back and playing over 38 minutes a game, he saw an increase in all statistical categories in the 1999–2000 season. This included leading the team in assists per game and steals per game. The duo of O'Neal and Bryant backed with a strong bench led to the Lakers winning 67 games, tied for fifth-most in NBA history. This followed with O'Neal winning the MVP and Bryant being named to the
All-NBA Team Second Team and All-NBA Defensive Team for the first time in his career (the youngest player ever to receive defensive honors).
[54] While playing second fiddle to O'Neal in the playoffs, Bryant had some
clutch performances including a 25 point, 11 rebound, 7 assist, 4 block game in game 7 of the Western Conference finals against the
Portland Trail Blazers.
[55] He also threw an alley-oop pass to O'Neal to clinch the game and the series. In the
2000 NBA Finals against the
Indiana Pacers, Bryant injured his ankle in the second quarter of Game 2 after landing on the Pacers'
Jalen Rose's foot. Rose later admitted he placed his foot under Bryant intentionally.
[56][57] Bryant did not return to the game, and he also missed Game 3 due to the injury. In Game 4, Bryant scored 22 points in the second half, and led the team to an OT victory as O'Neal fouled out of the game. Bryant scored the winning shot to put the Lakers ahead 120–118.
[58] With a 116–111 Game 6 victory, the Lakers won their first championship since
1988.
[59]
Statistically, the
2000–01 season saw Bryant perform similarly to the previous year, but he averaged 6 more points a game (28.5). It was also the year when disagreements between Bryant and O'Neal began to surface.
[60] Once again he led the team in assists with 5 per game. The Lakers however, only won 56 games, an 11-game drop off from last year. The Lakers would respond by going 15–1 in the playoffs. They easily swept the
Portland Trail Blazers,
Sacramento Kings, and
San Antonio Spurs, before losing their first game against the
Philadelphia 76ers in OT. They would go on to win the next 4 games and bring their second championship to Los Angeles in as many seasons. During the playoffs, Bryant played heavy minutes which brought his stats up to 29.4 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 6.1 assists per game. In the playoffs, teammate O'Neal declared Bryant the best player in the league.
[21][61] Bryant ended up making the All NBA Second team and All NBA Defensive Team for the second year in a row. In addition, he was also voted to start in the NBA All-Star Game for the 3rd year in a row (no game in 1999).
In the
2001–02 season, Bryant played 80 games for the first time in his career. He continued his all-round play by averaging 25.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game. He also had a career high 46.9% shooting and once again led his team in assists. While making the All-Star team and All-NBA Defensive team again, he was also promoted to the All-NBA First Team for the first time in his career. The Lakers won 58 games that year and finished second place in the
Pacific Division behind in-state rival
Sacramento Kings. Bryant was suspended one game after he punched
Reggie Miller of the
Indiana Pacers after the Lakers' March 1, 2002 victory over the Pacers.
[62][63]
The road to the Finals would prove a lot tougher than the record run the Lakers had the previous year. While the Lakers swept the
Blazers and defeated the
Spurs 4–1, the Lakers did not have home court advantage against the
Sacramento Kings. The series would stretch to 7 games, the first time this happened to the Lakers since the 2000 Western Conference Finals. However, the Lakers were able to beat their division rivals and make their third consecutive
NBA Finals appearance. In the
2002 Finals, Bryant averaged 26.8 points, 51.4% shooting, 5.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists per game, which included scoring a quarter of the teams points.
[64] At age 23, Bryant became the youngest player to win three championships.
[64] Bryant's play was notable and praised for his performance in the 4th quarter of games, specifically the last 2 rounds of the playoffs.
[64][65] This cemented Bryant's reputation as a
clutch player.
Coming up short (2002–04)
Bryant prepares to shoot a free throw in 2005.
In the
2002–03 season, Bryant averaged 30 points per game and embarked on a historic run, posting
40 or more points in nine consecutive games while averaging 40.6 in the entire month of February. In addition, he averaged 6.9
rebounds, 5.9
assists, and 2.2
steals per game, all career highs to that point. Bryant was once again voted to both the All-NBA and All-Defensive 1st teams,
[4] and came in third place in voting for the MVP award. After finishing 50–32 in the regular season, the Lakers foundered
in the playoffs and lost in the Western Conference semi-finals to the eventual NBA champions
San Antonio Spurs in six games.
[66]
In the following
2003–04 season, the Lakers were able to acquire NBA All-Stars
Karl Malone, and
Gary Payton to make another push at the NBA Championship.
[67] Before the season began, Bryant was arrested for sexual assault.
[68] This caused Bryant to miss some games due to court appearances or attend court earlier in the day and travel to play games later in same day.
[69] In the final game of the regular season, the Lakers played the
Portland Trail Blazers. Bryant made two buzzer beaters to win the game and the
Pacific Division title. At the end of the fourth quarter, Bryant made a 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left to send it into overtime.
[70] The game eventually went to a second overtime, in which Bryant made another 3-pointer as time expired to lift the Lakers past the Blazers, 105–104.
[70]
With a starting lineup of four future
Hall of Famers, O'Neal, Malone, Payton, and Bryant, the Lakers were able to reach
the NBA Finals.
[71]However, they were upset in five games by the
Detroit Pistons, who won their first championship since
1990.
[72] In that series, Bryant averaged 22.6 points per game and 4.4 assists. He shot 35.1% from the field.
[73] Phil Jackson's contract as coach was not renewed, and
Rudy Tomjanovich took over.
[74] Shaquille O'Neal was traded to the
Miami Heat for
Lamar Odom,
Caron Butler, and
Brian Grant.
[75] The following day, Bryant declined an offer to sign with the
Los Angeles Clippers and re-signed with the Lakers on a seven-year contract.
[76]
Setting records and playoffs disappointments (2004–07)
Bryant was closely scrutinized and criticized during the
2004–05 season with his reputation badly damaged from all that had happened over the previous year. A particularly damaging salvo came when Phil Jackson wrote
The Last Season: A Team in Search of Its Soul. The book detailed the events of the Lakers' tumultuous
2003–04 season and has a number of criticisms of Bryant. In the book Jackson called Bryant "uncoachable".
[77] Midway through the season,
Rudy Tomjanovich suddenly resigned as Lakers coach, citing the recurrence of health problems and exhaustion.
[78] Without Tomjanovich, stewardship of the remainder of the Lakers' season fell to career assistant coach
Frank Hamblen.
[79]Bryant was the league's second-leading scorer at 27.6 points per game, but he was surrounded by a subpar supporting cast, and the Lakers went 34–48 and missed the playoffs for the first time in over a decade.
[80] The year signified a drop in Bryant's overall status in the NBA, as he did not make the NBA All-Defensive Team and was also demoted to the All-NBA Third Team.
[81] During the season, Bryant also engaged in public feuds with
Ray Allen and
Karl Malone.
[82][83]
The
2005–06 NBA season would mark a crossroads in Bryant's basketball career. Despite past differences with Bryant,
Phil Jackson returned to coach the Lakers.
[84] Bryant endorsed the move, and by all appearances, the two men worked together well the second time around, leading the Lakers
back into the playoffs. Bryant's individual scoring accomplishments posted resulted in the finest statistical season of his career. On December 20, 2005, Bryant scored 62 points in three quarters against the
Dallas Mavericks. Entering the fourth quarter, Bryant outscored the entire Mavericks team 62–61, the only time a player has done this through three quarters since the introduction of the
shot clock.
[85] When the Lakers faced the
Miami Heat on January 16, 2006, Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal made headlines by engaging in handshakes and hugs before the game, signifying a change in
the feud that had festered between them.
[86] A month later, at the
2006 NBA All-Star Game, the two were seen laughing together.
[87]
On January 22, 2006, Bryant scored a career-high 81 points in a victory against the
Toronto Raptors.
[88][89] In addition to breaking the previous franchise record of 71 set by
Elgin Baylor, Bryant's 81-point game was the second-highest point total in NBA history, surpassed only by Wilt Chamberlain's
100-point game in
1962.
[90] In that same month, Bryant also became the first player since
1964 to score 45 points or more in four consecutive games, joining Chamberlain and Baylor as the only players ever to do so.
[91] For the month of January, Bryant averaged 43.4 points per game,
[92] the eighth highest single month scoring average in NBA history and highest for any player other than Chamberlain.
[93] By the end of the 2005–06 season, Bryant set Lakers single-season franchise records for most 40-point games (27) and most points scored (2,832).
[94] He won the league's scoring title for the first time by averaging
35.4 points per game. Bryant finished in fourth place in the voting for the 2006
NBA Most Valuable Player Award, but received 22 first place votes—second only to winner
Steve Nash.
[95] The Los Angeles Lakers posted a 45–37 record, an eleven-game improvement over the previous season, and the entire squad seemed to be clicking.
[96]
Later in the season, it was reported that Bryant would change his jersey number from 8 to 24 at the start of the
2006–07 NBA season. Bryant's first high school number was 24 before he switched to 33.
[97] After the Lakers' season ended, Bryant said on
TNT that he wanted 24 as a rookie, but it was unavailable, as was 33, retired with
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Bryant wore 143 at the
Adidas ABCD camp, and chose 8 by adding those numbers.
[97] In the first round of the playoffs, the Lakers played well enough to reach a 3–1 series lead over the
Phoenix Suns, culminating with Bryant's OT-forcing and game-winning shots in Game 4. They came within six seconds of eliminating the second-seeded Suns in Game 6, however, they lost that game 126–118 in overtime.
[98] Despite Bryant's 27.9 points per game in the series, the Lakers broke down, and ultimately fell to the Suns in seven games.
[98] Bryant received criticism for only taking three shots in the second half of the 121–90 Game 7 loss to Phoenix.
[99] In the 2006 off-season, Bryant had knee surgery, preventing him from participating in the
2006 FIBA World Championship tournament.
[100]
Bryant scored 50 points or more in four consecutive games and ten total in the 2006–07 season.
During the
2006–07 season, Bryant was selected to his 9th All-Star Game appearance, and on February 18, he logged 31 points, 6 assists, and 6 steals, earning his second career All-Star Game MVP trophy.
[101] Over the course of the season, Bryant became involved in a number of on court incidents. On January 28 while attempting to draw contact on a potential game winning jumpshot, he flailed his arm, striking
San Antonio Spurs guard
Manu Ginóbili in the face with his elbow.
[102] Following a league review, Bryant was suspended for the subsequent game at
Madison Square Garden against the
New York Knicks. The basis given for the suspension was that Bryant had performed an "unnatural motion" in swinging his arm backwards.
[103] Later, on March 6, he seemed to repeat the motion, this time striking
Minnesota Timberwolves guard
Marko Jarić.
[102] On March 7, the NBA handed Bryant his second one-game suspension.
[104] In his first game back on March 9, he elbowed
Kyle Korverin the face which was retroactively re-classified as a Type 1
flagrant foul.
[102]
On March 16, Bryant scored a season-high 65 points in a home game against the
Portland Trail Blazers, which helped end the Lakers 7-game losing streak. This was the second-best scoring performance of his 11-year career.
[105] The following game, Bryant recorded 50 points against the Minnesota Timberwolves,
[106] after which he scored 60 points in a road win against the
Memphis Grizzlies—becoming the second Laker to score three straight 50-plus point games, a feat not seen since
Michael Jordan last did it in 1987.
[107] The only other Laker to do so was
Elgin Baylor, who also scored 50+ in three consecutive contests in December
1962.
[107] In the following day, in a game against the
New Orleans Hornets, Bryant scored 50 points, making him the second player in NBA history to have 4 straight 50 point games behind Wilt Chamberlain, who is the all-time leader with seven consecutive 50 point games twice.
[108] Bryant finished the year with a total of ten 50-plus point games,
[109] becoming the only player beside
Wilt Chamberlain in 1961–62 and 1962–63 to do so in one season. He also won his second straight scoring title that season.
[110] Throughout the 2006–07 season, Bryant's jersey became the top selling NBA jersey in the United States and China.
[111] A number of journalists have attributed the improved sales to Bryant's new number, as well as his continuing All-Star performance on the court.
[112][113] In the
2007 NBA Playoffs, the Lakers were once again eliminated in the first round by the
Phoenix Suns, 4–1.
[114]
MVP year and trip to the finals (2007–08)
On May 27, 2007,
ESPN reported that Bryant stated that he wanted to be traded if
Jerry West did not return to the team with full authority.
[115] Bryant later confirmed his desire for West's return to the franchise, but denied stating that he would want to be traded if that does not occur.
[116] However, three days later, on
Stephen A. Smith's radio program, Bryant expressed anger over a Lakers "insider" who claimed that Bryant was responsible for
Shaquille O'Neal's departure from the team, and publicly stated, "I want to be traded."
[117]Three hours after making that statement, Bryant stated in another interview that after having a conversation with head coach
Phil Jackson, he has reconsidered his decision and backed off his trade request.
[118] Bryant would later be shown on an infamous amateur video saying that center
Andrew Bynum should have been traded for All-Star
Jason Kidd.
[119][120]
On December 23, 2007, Bryant became the youngest player (29 years, 122 days) to reach 20,000 points, in a game against the
New York Knicks, in
Madison Square Garden.
[121] Despite an injury to his shooting hand's small finger, described as "a complete tear of the
radial collateral ligament, an
avulsion fracture, and a volar plate injury at the MCP joint" that occurred in a game on February 5, 2008, Bryant played all 82 games of the regular season instead of opting for surgery. Regarding his injury, he stated, "I would prefer to delay any surgical procedure until after our Lakers season, and this summer's Olympic Games. But, this is an injury that myself [
sic] and the Lakers' medical staff will just have to continue to monitor on a day-to-day basis."
[122] In early September 2008, Bryant decided not to have surgery to repair the injury.
[123]
Leading his team to a West best 57–25 record, they swept the
Nuggets in the first round and on May 6, 2008, Bryant was officially announced as the
NBA Most Valuable Player award, his first for his career.
[124] He said, "It's been a long ride. I'm very proud to represent this organization, to represent this city."
[125] Jerry West, who was responsible for bringing Bryant to the Lakers, was on hand at the press conference to observe Bryant receive his MVP trophy from NBA commissioner David Stern. He stated, "Kobe deserved it. He's had just another great season. Doesn't surprise me one bit."
[126] In addition to winning his MVP award, Bryant was the only unanimous selection to the All-NBA team on May 8, 2008 for the third straight season and sixth time in his career.
[127] He would then headline the NBA All-Defensive First Team with
Kevin Garnett, receiving 52 points overall including 24 first-place nods, earning his eighth selection.
[128]
The Lakers concluded the 2007–08 regular season with a 57–25 record, finishing first in the Western Conference and setting up themselves for a first-round contest against the Nuggets. In Game 1, Bryant, who said he made himself a decoy through most of the game, scored 18 of his 32 points in the final 8 minutes to keep Los Angeles safely ahead.
[129] That made Denver the first 50-win team to be swept out of the first round of the playoffs since the
Memphis Grizzlies fell in four to the
San Antonio Spurs in 2004.
[130] In the first game of the next round against the
Jazz, Bryant scored 38 points as the Lakers beat the Jazz in Game 1.
[131] The Lakers won the next game as well, but dropped Games 3 and 4, even with Bryant putting up 33.5 points per game.
[132] The Lakers then won the next two games to win the semifinals in 6.
[132] This set up a
Western Conference Finals berth against the
San Antonio Spurs. The Lakers defeated the Spurs in 5 games, sending themselves to the
NBA Finals against the
Boston Celtics. This marked the fifth time in Bryant's career and the first time without
Shaquille O'Neal to go to the NBA Finals.
[133] The Lakers then lost to the Boston Celtics in
6 games.
[134]
Back on top (2008–10)
In the
2008–09 season, the Lakers opened the campaign by winning their first seven games.
[135] Bryant led the team to tie the franchise record for most wins to start the season going 17–2,
[136] and by the middle of December they compiled a 21–3 record. He was selected to his eleventh consecutive
All-Star Game as a starter,
[137] and was named the Western Conference Player of the Month for December and January in addition to being named Western Conference Player of the week three times.
[138] In a game against the
Knicks on February 2, 2009, Bryant scored 61 points, setting a record for the most points scored at
Madison Square Garden.
[139] During the
2009 NBA All-Star Game, Bryant who tallied 27 points, 4 assists, 4 rebounds, and 4 steals was awarded All-Star Game co-MVP with former teammate
Shaquille O'Neal.
[140] The Lakers finished the regular season with the best record in the west with a 65–17 record. Bryant was runner-up in the MVP voting behind
LeBron James,
[141] and was selected to the All-NBA First Team and All-Defensive First Team for the seventh time in his career.
In
the playoffs, the Lakers defeated the
Utah Jazz in five games and the
Houston Rockets in seven games in the opening two rounds. After finishing off the
Denver Nuggets in the Conference Finals in six games, the Lakers earned their second straight trip to the
NBA Finals where they defeated the
Orlando Magic in five games. Bryant was awarded his first
NBA Finals MVP trophy upon winning his fourth championship,
[142]achieving series averages: 32.4 points, 7.4 assists, 5.6 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 1.4 blocks.
[143] He became the first player since
Jerry West in the
1969 NBA Finals to average at least 32.4 points and 7.4 assists for a finals series
[144] and the first since
Michael Jordan to average 30 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists for a title-winning team in the finals.
[145]
During the
2009–10 season, Bryant made six game-winning shots including a
buzzer-beating, one-legged 3-pointer against the
Miami Heat on December 4, 2009.
[146] Bryant considered the shot one of the luckiest he has made.
[146] A week later, Bryant suffered an avulsion fracture in his right
index finger in a game against the
Minnesota Timberwolves.
[147] Despite the injury, Bryant elected to continue playing with it, rather than take any time off to rest the injury.
[147] Five days after his finger injury, he made another game winning shot, after missing on an opportunity in regulation, this time against the
Milwaukee Bucks in an overtime game.
[148]Bryant also became the youngest player (31 years, 151 days) to reach 25,000 points during the season, surpassing Wilt Chamberlain.
[149] He continued his dominant clutch plays making yet another game-winning three-pointer against the
Sacramento Kings,
[150] and what would be the game-winning field goal against the
Boston Celtics.
[151] The following day, he surpassed Jerry West to become the all-time leading scorer in Lakers franchise history.
[152] After being sidelined for five games from an ankle injury, Bryant made his return and made another clutch three-pointer to give the Lakers a one-point lead with four seconds remaining against the
Memphis Grizzlies.
[153] Two weeks later, he made his sixth game-winning shot of the season against the Toronto Raptors.
[154]
On April 2, 2010, Bryant signed a three-year contract extension worth $87 million.
[155] Bryant finished the regular season missing four of the final five games, due to injuries to his knee and finger. Bryant suffered multiple injuries throughout the season and as a result, missed nine games. The Lakers began the
playoffs as the number one seed in the Western Conference against the
Oklahoma City Thunder,
[156] eventually defeating them in six games.
[157] The Lakers swept the
Utah Jazz in the second round
[158] and advanced to the Western Conference Finals, where they faced
Phoenix Suns. In Game 2, Bryant finished the game with 13 assists, setting a new playoff career high; it was the most assists by a Laker in the playoffs since
Magic Johnson had 13 in
1996.
[159] The Lakers went on to win the series in six games capturing the Western Conference Championship and advancing to the NBA Finals for a third straight season.
[160] In a rematch against the 2008 Champion
Boston Celtics, Bryant, despite shooting 6 for 24 from the field, led the Lakers back from a thirteen-point third quarter deficit in Game 7 to win
the championship; he scored 10 of his game-high 23 points in the fourth quarter, and finished the game with 15 rebounds. Bryant won his fifth championship and earned his second consecutive
NBA Finals MVP award.
[161] This marked the first time the Lakers won a Game 7 against the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals.
[162] Bryant said that this was the most satisfying of all of his five championships.
[163]
NBA career statistics
Regular season
- Correct as of April 13, 2013
Playoffs
John Todd Purves (2012-13)
