10...9…8…the clock ticks down as the game is coming to a
close. Lakers tied 86-86. It was a scene that Laker fans had seen a hundred
times. It’s the 4th quarter. Kobe has the ball. Everyone in the
stadium is standing up, expecting to see Kobe do what he has done numerous
times while wearing that purple and gold jersey, make the game winning shot.
7…6…5…Kobe dribbles to the left wing as another defender leans
toward Kobe’s direction. The other team, The Denver Nuggets, know that there’s
no way Kobe will pass the ball. 4…3…2…1…
Kobe turns, does his signature fade away and releases the
ball at the height of his jump. The ball arcs high above the defender and looks
like it is heading home towards the basket. As the ball descends it spins a bit
to its right and hits the back of the rim and misses. The entire stadium gasps.
No one can believe that Kobe missed, not even the other team. The game heads to
overtime where the Lakers lose, 101-94. This has been the story for Kobe and
the Lakers so far this season. As of right now the Lakers are 6-16, half of a game
above worst place in the Western Conference.
This season has been a difficult one for Laker fans. There
have been numerous injuries already in the season, such as heralded rookie
Julius Randle missing the whole season with a broken leg that occurred in the
first game of the season. The worst part about the season, Laker fans might
admit, is watching Kobe end his career on such a dreadful team. He is shooting the lowest field goal
percentage of his career 39% while attempting 22.4 shots a game. Also this
season he just broke the record for the most missed shots ever by an NBA
player. He’s near the bottom for 3 pointers as well 29%. Laker fans are seeing
their superhero become mortal in right front of their eyes.
Born in Philadelphia in 1978, Kobe has always had basketball
blood in him. His father, Joe “Jellybean” Bryant was an NBA player who also
played in the Euro League. Kobe lived in Italy for seven years while his father
played basketball. Soccer was the most popular sport in Italy and they would
rarely show NBA games on TV so Kobe had his grandmother send him tapes from the
United States. As he watched more basketball, he started to become a fan of
Laker legend Magic Johnson.
Bryant would return to the States for high school and would
proceed to dominate his competition. He led his high school team, the Lower
Marion Aces to their first championship while averaging 30.8 points, 12
rebounds. Kobe was one of the first high school basketball players to jump
straight to the NBA without going to college. Even though he was highly
heralded coming out of high school Kobe fell to 13th in the 1996 NBA
draft. The Charlotte Hornets drafted him and then proceeded to trade him to the
Lakers. The Lakers would pair him up with Shaquille O’Neal and they would go on
to form one of the greatest duos of all time, winning three championships in a
row from 2000-2002.
Kobe has been one of the most polarizing athletes in recent
memory. Every basketball fan, whether they love or hate him, has a strong
opinion on Kobe. No matter what your opinion of Kobe is, it is hard to deny that he is one of the greatest players the NBA has ever seen. His resume speaks for himself. Sixteen time all-star Eleven time all NBA first
team Five time NBA champion Two time Finals MVP and he is currently 4th
all time in all time scoring. In addition he has broken numerous Laker records,
such as: most games played, points, minutes, shots made, and many more.
Kobe is known for his extremely competitive mindset in which
he will do anything it takes to win. Kobe has flown all the way to
Germany to have a knee surgery done that is banned in the United States so that
he could extend his playing career. Although his competitive mindset has gotten
winning results, it has also turned away teammates such as Dwight Howard who
couldn’t handle playing with him.
What the future has in store for Kobe is up in the air as of
right now. Kobe has stated that he plans on retiring after his contract expires
at the end of next season. I don’t think anyone would blame him for retiring;
after playing nineteen seasons in the NBA in addition to the all the playoff
games Kobe has played, his body has taken a lot of wear and tear. Kobe is
currently twelfth all time in minutes played. Kobe is also third all time in
playoff minutes with 8,641, which equals up to an extra season in just playoff
games. These heavy minutes could be one of the reasons why Kobe was injured the
past two seasons. He suffered a torn Achilles in April 2013 and in December he
suffered his second injury of 2013 with a lateral tibial plateau fracture.
Kobe is in a difficult situation with this
Lakers team. They are not competitive enough for the playoffs and the chances
of Kobe getting his sixth ring are slimmer and slimmer as the end of his career
approaches. He has battled through adversity before when Shaq left town in
2004, but that was when he was young and in the prime of his career. As each
game goes by it gets closer to the end of one of the best careers the NBA has
seen. When Kobe finally retires it will not only be a loss for Lakers fans but
a loss for basketball in general.
