Best Final year in Nba history
Someone mentioned this and I think it is a good question. As far as we know, we could be seeing it now, but seen as that is not known yet, Who do y’all think it is
His final year was whatever but Kobe’s final game itself will probably be forever untouched
His final year was one of the worst of all time it wasn’t just whatever
Not really though, a lot of other guys looked like they couldn’t get up and down the court by their last year and could barely get minutes at all - Paul Pierce, Chris Paul, Dirk, TMac, Isaiah Thomas, KG, Chris Webber.
Many guys hold on way too long, they just go out in more obscurity than Kobe did.
But none of those got the green light like Kobe did. That’s why Kobe’s was insane lol
Does it make it worse that he happened to be on a worse team than basically all those other guys that needed someone to take shots? Idk
his last year was pretty bad tbh
Counterpoint: Dirk last home game > Kobe 60 pointer.
Totally not biased opinion btw.
Spurs fan here and I agree
Duncan going out in a game 7 bloodbath playoff series vs Lob City was also incredible. Duncan, Kobe, and Dirk are the 3 best & most accomplished players of the 2000s and they each got an incredible send off. Can’t ask for much better, tbh.
Combined 2000s Regular-Season Totals (1999–00 to 2008–09)
Player
Games Played
Regular-Season Record (W–L)
Win %
Regular-Season Points
Tim Duncan
767
547–220
71.3%
16,431
Dirk Nowitzki
792
532–260
67.2%
18,699
Kobe Bryant
748
488–260
65.2%
21,065
Combined Total
2,307
1,567–740
67.9%
56,195
You’re a year off, 2016 Thunder retired Duncan. CP3 game winner was 2015.
I really enjoyed Dirk’s final year in general
His last game was definitely an “eye of the beholder” thing. I know Kobe fans loved it, but as someone who was never into Kobe, I thought that final game was ridiculous, unwatchable basketball.
It wasn’t even the best game of the day.
They won and beat a Utah team still, allegedly, trying to get to the playoffs, until that evening.
I thought it was kinda embarrassing, but him and his fans loved it, so good for them
That game is as just a glaze fest. Have his number on the fuckinf court, allow him to shoot all game
Absolutely. Game looked completely over, Kobe goes cold early in the 4th, down 10 with 2-3 minutes to go. Then suddenly he hits 5 consecutive shots, 2⁄2 on free throws, plus the game-icing assist. It was special to witness.
It’s a vocal minority obviously, but it’s legit sad how some people on here can’t appreciate a moment like that.
100%! It’s easy to look back historically and nitpick the final game numbers. But anyone who was watching in that moment knew how surreal and special it was for an all-time great to give us one last banger.
I remember switching back and forth between that game and the Warriors regular season finale that would get them to 73 wins. Ultimately I settled on the Lakers Jazz game and was not disappointed.
It was a fun game to watch, but come on dude even as a Kobe fan I can admit it was straight up all-star game defense.
Bill Russell is head and shoulders over everyone else.
Finished 4th in MVP voting and won a championship as a player-coach over the heavily favored Lakers while averaging 9 points, 21 rebounds, and 5 assists against Wilt Chamberlain in the finals.
This is crazy. He was the only coach on staff, too. He would also barely ever sub himself out and would make signals to the bench between plays to manage player minutes. How the fuck are you playing basketball and managing the team at the same time?
Apparently Wilt himself publicly criticized Bill trying to do both, and then lost to him in game 7 of the finals at home.
Bill Russell for sure
First player coach to win a title, everyone thought his dynasty was over, makes it to the Finals against Wilt, West, Baylor and a great Lakers team
Does what Bill Russell always does and walks away a champion
GOAT
/thread
Would’ve been Jordan with the goat ending that anyone would dream of in a team sport
But Russell winning once again over the Lakers in game 7 one last time in LA and telling Jerry West before the game that those damn balloons in the rafters will stay up there is iconic
Pretty sure he said that to his teammates, not to Jerry West. As far as I know Jerry West hated the balloons thing from whenever he heard about it.
Bill Russell without a singular doubt. Won a title as the last team in the playoffs and defeated the first ever super team. Cementing Russell as the greatest player of all time for at least the next 2 decades.
Bill Russell himself was on the first ever superteam
It’s 1969 Bill Russell.
That season Wilt went to LA to team up with West and Baylor and the conversation wasn’t if they’d win. It was how many. Auerbach was adamant in the offseason that it doesn’t mean shit on paper and they have to actually win it.
People thought the Celtics were too old for the dynasty to survive (including Wilt who said it to the media). The Lakers owner literally had balloons ready to fall on the court to celebrate after Game 7 expecting a win. But the Celtics clutched it out the whole way through.
This. It would have made a great movie.
If you’re a reader Leigh Monteville has a great book about this season Tall Men and Short Short’s
I’ll add it to the stack of NBA books I’ll surely read at some point, thanks for the recommendation.
Russel westbrook. Finally got to fulfill his lifelong dream of playing for the sacramento kings.
Michael Jordan 1998. Everyone just has a strange “mandela effect” about him playing for the Wizards?? when that was clearly someone else with a mustache
Winning the title on your home floor in the finals for The Admiral must have felt pretty damn nice
PURO PINCHE SPURS BABAY
Bill Russel is the answer, but there’s some other interesting ones too.
Bob Petit’s last year he averaged 22.5, was all star and all nba.
Bird averaged 20/10/7 his final year.
Admiral got his second ring and had a great performance his last game in the finals (13⁄17).
David Robinson maybe. Finally got his ring
That was his second ring, he got the first one in 1999 (lockout year, but yeah)
Other than the one he won in 1999?
This is probably the answer. As other said, it was his second ring, but he was on his last wheels, which is a shame since that injury that caused the Spurs to suck in 97 and eventually get Duncan really took away his greatness those last few years.
But also, winning the lockout season was immediately mocked by others, especially Phil Jackson. He was the one who kept going on and on about putting an asterisk on that championship, and then he took over the Lakers and kept winning, so to have the big return to the Finals and win in his last season playing was probably the greatest for David.
That was his 2nd chip, but he’s a good answer. He played great in his last game to win the chip too.
Started his career with a block on Magic and finished it with a block on Kidd
On Fathers Day
Vince Carter. I got one more in me
Bronny James getting to watch the Lakers and 76ers face each other in the NBA finals this season /s
Dwyane Wade and Dirk Nowitzki.
Sitting in a tree
kissing
Russell, Wilt and MJ. In that order
We’ll always fondly remember Jordan’s final game as a Wizard.
I was working as an intern for the 76ers at the time and was at the game. It was a pretty special environment
His team lost by 20 points.
I know. I was there. He also had multiple standing ovations and tribute videos.
Poole just hasn’t been the same since joining the Pelicans.
Wilt?
Yeah. Played all 82 games. Grabbed 18 boards. Set a league record at the time for FG percentage at around 73% and reached the Finals
I was processing 98 MJ not 03 MJ. But MJ shouldn’t be too close, 16 Duncan, 89 Kareem (team success), and 63 Cousy should be ahead
Cousy technically came back in 1970, so he’s off the list for the same reason Jordan is.
Good shout on 89 Kareem.
I took OP’s question from more of an individual accomplishment standpoint with team success being the cherry on top.
I’ve long thought MJ gets dogged unfairly for his Wizards run. He played better than people think. He was doing things that still amazed me even into his final year. Played all 82 games. Averaged 20. First 40 year old to score 40+ and did that 3 times.
But I can’t argue any of your choices there. I’m partial to the 89 Kareem shout. Lakers got swept in the Finals but there was one game Kareem went off and just banged in skyhook after skyhook. Was fun to watch.
MJ?
Of course. 82 games played. 20 ppg at a time even scoring was down drastically. First 40 year old to score 40 or more in a game. Did that 3 times. Received so much fanfare and tributes everywhere he want. Russell and Wilt had more team success in their final seasons and that’s why I rank them ahead, but on merits Jordan’s last season ranks right up there.
“Of course” he was just chucking his way to 20 ppg and playing losing basketball.
If that’s up there then so is Kobe’s, he has all the same fanfare and obviously an even more impressive high scoring game. Kobe was in year 20 and Jordan was only in year 15 too…
He still shot 45% from the field. Far cry from his usual production but it wasn’t like he was a net negative.
Age matters more than how many seasons played.
And again lowest scoring era in history.Kobe was way more inefficient only played 66 games, was at 17.5 ppg in a way higher scoring era 36% from the field in a way more efficient era. They won 13 games when he played lol, which is even worse than their winning percentage when he didn’t play.Kobe was 37 MJ was 40. MJ had more points nearly double the rebounds & assists on 10% better from the field, double the steals and blocks while having the same amount of turnovers.He also went 37-45 way better than Kobe. They also won the minutes MJ played lol.Eye test matches it too, Kobe was just not the same he could barely move compared to his pre injury self, he was absolutely terrible on defense and they lost the minutes he played. With MJ it was just sad because he was no longer the best in the world dominant guy, he was just pretty good.
But I loved Kobe and it was way more sad to see dude. He was literally just going out there with a broken body barely holding on via willpower and determination
That 60 point game was epic but it was basically a tribute they weren’t even trying to stop him, it was the players paying their respects to a living legend
And at the end of the day that one epic game doesn’t overshadow one of the worst seasons ever
I don’t see anyone getting a farewell tour like Kobe had even though there are players now like Steph and Lebron who would be just as deserving.
The vibes were great
The basketball certainly not.
Yeah the basketball was terrible but it was a spectacle we might never see again for such an iconic player.
His last game at every arena, trading jerseys and giving out sneakers to opposing players, last game against Pau, and of course his 60-pt game against the Jazz was just insanity. I had ACL surgery that morning and was euphoric watching that game.
Bro, I was heading home from work, stopped at a Buffalo Wild Wings and they had the sound and most tvs on the Warriors game (they were going for win number 73). I asked if they could put a tv on the Kobe game and the bartender eventually did. As the game progressed little by little more tvs got switched to Kobe before finally all TVs and the sound were on Kobe and you know how it went.
I think a 30 for 30 or sports century doc should be made for that night and the narrator could start it off with “What if I told you that sometimes 60 is greater than 73?”
Unrelated but a documentary about LeBron’s hairline could start with “What if I told you the greatest comeback of LeBron’s career happened off the court?”
I had called in to work and took the day off because I was legit not feeling well. I felt better by the afternoon and my mom had tickets to Kobe’s second to last game ever in San Antonio. I got to see Kobe and it was cool until I heard “glad you’re feeling better” from a couple of rows up. It was my boss. He was cool and understood tho
Kobe’s last year wasn’t anything wild, but his last game was such a perfect send off. Totally a Kobe performance, down to the grittiness and high volume of shot attempts. Having Shaq courtside cheering on his old running mate was especially meaningful.
Jeremy Lin 2019, final year got his ring and showed Linsanity > Carmelo.
I’m going to say Bosh in 2015-16. Most answers in this thread are jokes or saying a player who was washed but at least got a ring in his final season: David Robinson and Jeremy lin.
I say Chris Bosh because in his final season he was still really good. He played 53 games before the blood clot issue, he was selected to the all star game, and was averaging 19-7-2 on scoring efficiency that was 5% better than league average. The Heat lost in game 7 of the second round to the Raptors that season. Narrowly missing out on a trip to the ECF to face LeBron and his new squad. Had Bosh not missed the last 40% of the season and playoffs I think it’s likely the Heat make the ECF and we get to see Bosh and Wade vs LeBron in one of the more memorable playoff series ever.
I wish Bosh had a more deserving end to his career. He sacrificed a lot and completely changed his game in Miami while staying relentlessly positive. Doesn’t get enough credit.
I think hamburgers and cheeseburgers work well with fries
I agree. They go together like hotdogs and chips or meatloaf and mashed potatoes