It was always going to happen this way, wasn’t it?
Kobe Bryant, 37, retired from the game of basketball last night, and prior to the game, no one knew just what to expect. Would he cry? How many minutes would he play? Would he make it to the end of the game? (We’ve seen Kobe practically mummified on the sidelines in recent weeks after playing just 20 minutes.) Would he try to go out with a bang? Or would he want to be remembered as the team player that didn’t hog the spotlight for himself in his waning moments?
Okay, just kidding about that last one. We all knew the answer to that.
Kobe Bean Bryant, after an awkward 0-4 start, went on to pour in SIXTY points, including several clutch shots and free throws down the stretch in the fourth quarter, to lead the Lakers to a comeback victory over a beleaguered Jazz team that had been officially eliminated from the playoffs when the Rockets blowout of the Kings went final just before tip-off. Kobe looked like his old self, the Kobe that willed a couple of decent Lakers teams to back-to-back titles in 2009 and 2010, pulling off sweeping 4-point play attempts from beyond the three-point line and slicing and dicing his way into the lane for acrobatic runners and jumpers.
As it happens, before the game, Shaquille O’Neal challenged Kobe to go out and get 50, and deliver one last Black Mamba performance for the people.
You know Kobe Bryant doesn’t back down from a challenge.
