Kobe Bryant a couple days before he tore his Achilles. Hits 4 of the most unbelievable shots you’ll ever see to win the game against Toronto.
Kobe gave everything he had to drag this team to the playoffs. One of his underrated years tbh.
Yeah, I remember this game was a must win too, we were trying to claw & scrape to get to the playoffs. When he did that dunk I couldn’t believe it. In OT with the game on the line and he just two hands it. Awesome
Came here to say exactly this!
He had refs help. Look at the FT disparity for the game he tore his Achilles
Vino season was one of my favorites of his. His athleticism was completely sapped, so he was all in on footwork and manipulating defenses, it was so much fun to watch.
Kobe at 34 still was pretty athletic, it was when he tore his Achilles his athleticism was completely shot
he was so athletic he made two opponents high five while in the air attempting a dunk
you talking about the Nets game winning dunk? that’s the one that comes to my mind lol
Yes Gerald Wallace and Kris Humphries lmao
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CwCldjeEQA
Definitely not. Here is a 12 minute compilation of his dunks from that season. The Nets poster on Wallace/Humphries was that year, transition poster on CP3 was that year. Hawks game winning dunk over Josh Smith was that year. Had a double clutch reverse against Klay as well.
Lateral movement was still there too. That famous play of him picking up Kyrie at mid court and shutting down every dribble move and eventually rejecting a jump shot was that year too.
2013 kobe was absurd. that’s his most underrated year ever. i know spurs were thanking the lord kobe was injured in their playoff matchup or they would have choked that 2013 series
Team gets shit on, but they were on a 55 win pace for the second half of the season. And Kobe they were getting Nash back for the playoffs when the Achilles popped. It fucking sucked. And Kobe killed the Spurs very consistently.
They only went on a 55 win pace cuz Kobe realized his team was dogshit and he needed to play 42+ minutes a game. The first half of the season they tried giving Dwight and Nash more minutes and when the Lakers realized they were washed Kobe had to come in and hard carry these bums
Did they now? Nash was got hurt in the second game of the year and was out until mid-season. But I’ll take your word that he was getting more minutes while in the training room.
Dwight Howard also had back issues and was much better later on in the season. And played more minutes in the second half of the season than earlier in the season.
And Pau was also injured. And when he wasn’t. D’Antoni was fucking around with his role. Until the last 12 games of the season when he came back and just played his game.
Health was the reason for the uptick in success.
Yup. It was a combo of injuries and frankly horrible coaching from D’Antoni that led to the Lakers being so bad early in the year.
Later in the year, the Lakers were actually good because
Yup, Kobe was always a bad matchup for the Spurs playstyle-wise. The type of defense they played was essentially built to force guys to certain spots on the court and those spots just happened to be the spots Kobe generally operated in.
Sucks because he was playing his best ball since basically 2008 up until the Achilles injury. He had some pretty insane poster dunks during this period iirc, so he had some athleticism still. This was the year after the Germany knee “procedure” as well.
He was still athletic that year. He just looked significantly less athletic relative to his pre-2011 self but relative to the rest of the league he was still like an 7 or 8 out of 10.
He definitely lost a step/some bounce, but the man was dunking on half the Nets.
This game was the beginning of the end. IIRC not too long after this game he was basically playing 40+ mins a night and in April it was like 45 mins per game
Aaron gray on that double team looked so dumb lol
Horrendous lol
didn’t last much longer after 1 more season in 2013-14. rarely known for playing winning basketball throughout his career (much like Drew Eubanks currently)
I just remember him because I’d get him as back up center in 2k because he sucked and wouldn’t have bad team morale because he was unhappy with his role and more importantly easy to get
yeah NBA2K14 memories….
Left such a big lane open 😂
Kobe used him as a screen.
Kobe made the most impossible shots look like homing missiles jfc
This video looks fucking fake, like you said the ball just magnets to the hoop. Monstars bullshit going on, I’ve played basketball on and off for 20 years and not ONE of my jumpers has ever looked like that lmfao
Fuck GM Mitch Kupchak. Fuck coach Mike Brown. Fuck washed ass Dwight Howard and Steve Nash.
All of this forced Kobe to play 40 minutes a game after all-star break to try and make a playoff push which caused the Achillies injury. 2013 Kobe was a top 5 Kobe year ever and he still had 3-5 more years in the tank for elite play until the injury happened.
At this point in time, he was on pace to catch Kareem for most points in NBA history
If the CP3 trade went thought, Chris Paul would have one or two rings and Kobe would have ended with 6 or 7
Maybe underrating scott foster though
That was Dantoni, not Brown.
And yes the load management was disgraceful, but I don’t blame Nash. Lakers knew the risk when they traded for a really old guy. And Dwight redeemed himself in 2020.
Yea with Nash it was a risk and it bit us. As for Dwight the guy was just not healthy and we wanted Orlando Dwight.
Some of my favorite players in the league coming to the Lakers just at the wrong time and it makes me sad. Hey though Dwight got one with us eventually filling a role I love to watch I just wasn’t watching basketball that year so it makes me sad that I missed that title.
You forgot: Fuck Mike D’Antoni
Fuck Mike D’Antoni most of all. Bum.
I still think the achilles tear was a build up from his 3 ankle sprains in 2.5 months during 2010-2011 season/playoffs. Dude declined surgery and went for some German treatment. He had issues with that ankle the rest of the time before his achilles tear. After those 3 ankle injures he noticeably declined in defense.
Yup. If Kobe was allowed to play a more regular load in his later years he would have very likely been able to be a 20+ PPG scorer for at least 4 more years post 2013. I think Kareem would’ve been difficult given Kobe’s body type, playstyle, and mounting injuries even without the achilles but he definitely would have still been effective in his late 30’s in reduced minutes and catching Karl Malone would have pretty much been a certainty.
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I don’t know about that man. Did you know Kobe? This is a guy that would die for the game, regardless of how close he thought he was close to retiring. 2013 Kobe averaged 28/6/6. He was 1st team all NBA and 5th in MVP voting. You’re telling me he was “close anyways to retire”?
Nah I think he had 3-5 more quality years in him if the injury never happened. This is not a guy who cares about “rehab” he just wanted to be on the court and hoop
That first one was 100 percent foul and wasn’t called. Kobe in today’s game would average over 30 points season after season.
Half the guys today wouldn’t even fade away to get the shot off like Kobe did. They’d jump into the defender then fall to the ground.
Yup. Even without any changes to his shot selection which would very likely have included more 3’s and free throws, just adjusting for pace brings his career averages up to around 29ppg for his entire 20 year career including the post-achilles years which brought his averages down.
He also already averaged 30/6/5 over a 5 year span from 06-10. In today’s era those numbers are likely around 34/7/6. I mean, his 06 season at today’s pace is at 39/6/5 which would have been insane and, again, that’s assuming he maintained the exact same shot chart which would have been highly unlikely.
Averaging almost 40 in a season is insane! Kobe endurance was not spoken enough.
Most skilled player of all time and I don’t think words do him justice either
All I know is I saw what I saw, I can never put him lower than top 5 all time
You were either old enough to agree with your statement, or a Gen Z zoomer who just looks at box score and thinks he’s overrated
Nuggets fans have always shown great appreciation for Kobe especially those who watched him play live in Colorado. Look up Kobe Colorado to learn more.
I’m not gonna force you to change your mind - I know what sub we’re on anyway - but if you had actually followed the case in real time, you’d be justified in having some reservations about the accuser.
At the end of the day it’s moot, there’s only 2 people who can tell you for sure what happened in that room.
Smart
I wish Mike D antoni had bigger balls to stop Kobe from playing 40+ mins a night that season
No one but Phil Jackson was stopping Kobe from doing whatever he wanted by that point in his career. We can argue about Kobe’s all time ranking from a basketball ability perspective but in terms of stature within the league no one post-merger has come close to the MJ, Kobe, Lebron tier. If D’Antoni sent someone to sub in for Kobe and Kobe refused to get off the court what was D’Antoni gonna do? Fine him? He’d be out of a job before they got on the team bus.
I will never not be convinced that if he doesn’t tear his Achilles he would have still been elite for a couple more seasons.
That isn’t even to mention how his career should have shaped out if he would have managed his wear and tear better.
I always believe if he didn’t torn his achilles he could beat karl malone scoring points.
“I don’t understand. Why didn’t he pump fake the shot, and then jump into the defender to draw the foul?”
-SGA
Before LeBron… Kobe owned Toronto.
That double team at the end is kind of hilarious. It gives Kobe a slow-footed big to dribble around with relative ease
I was at that game. Random game that my wife bought me a ticket for for my bday. Was epic!
This was the best year of his career. He was playing fast, jumping high, scoring with extreme efficiency for what he was doing which was classic hero ball.
That guy is an inefficient chucker - NBA Redditors
Watched this live & couldn’t believe it. He was on a mission
KOBE 🔥🔥🔥
Black Mamba 😤💪🏾
He never had that lift on his shot after the surgery
Not the Rudy Gay Raptors!
Vino
I don’t blame D’antoni for playing him so many minutes, he had no choice. Mitch K. shit the fucking bed rebuilding on the perimeter defense front. This was an era where everyone was stock piling athletic wings and this guy is trading for a near 40 year old Steve Nash with a fucked back after overpaying Steve Blake.
Do yourself a favor and watch Dwight Howard in these clips lol.
Their rim protector/center rotated to double team and basically blocked his screened his own teammate from defending kobe. Most limp dick double team I have ever witnessed.
Was this the game where he landed awkward on the right baseline and was down holding his heel and stretching his foot out for a bit?
Always wondered, by the fuck did they double with a 5 (Aaron Gray lead foot ass) at the top of the arch??? That was basically a pick, in all seriousness.
He liked tormenting Toronto
There was nothing the Raptors could do to stop that. It almost looks like the were asking for it. They’d never admit it, but I bet deep down they probably enjoyed it.
Couldn’t be denied
he’s in my top 5 ever idc
Thank goodness for these Kobe and LeBron clips. I’m ashamed at myself for forgetting how good these guys used to be
It’s always Toronto
I like it how he loathes his team-mates so badly he doesnt pass them the ball.