Throwback Thursday: Boston Celtics Down Kobe Bryant In The 2008 NBA Finals

By Chris Walton | Dec 31, 2015

Nov 22, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Kobe Bryant (24) reacts in the second half of the game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports /

Kobe Bryant’s MVP season is halted by the Boston Celtics in 2008

Wednesday night marked the last time that Kobe Bryant would grace the floor of the Boston Celtics. In fitting fashion, the Los Angeles Lakers pulled off the victory, 112-104. As many know, the Lakers and Celtics have a rivalry that only a few teams can boast in comparison.

Epic battles between Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell provided NBA historians with plenty of stories to tell over the years. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird would soon pick up where things left off and continue the showdowns. It was no surprise that Kobe Bryant would be thrilled at continuing competition amongst the franchises for championship gold.

In the aftermath of his last visit to Boston, we take a look at Bryant’s first chance at adding another championship trophy to his case at the Celtics’ expense. Unfortunately, things would end in a loss, but Bryant may have learned valuable lessons in the defeat.

It was arguably the best season of Bryant’s 20 professional years in from 2007-08. The Lakers finished with 57 wins, the most in the Western Conference, and Bryant won his first and only Most Valuable Player Award.

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Despite injuries to Andrew Bynum and a late returning Trevor Ariza, the Lakers fared well throughout the playoffs. The team was able to defeat the Denver Nuggets, Utah Jazz, and San Antonio Spurs, who had all won 50 or more games on the year. Bryant was on a collision course with history.

The Celtics were fresh of a 66-win season after a summer of adding Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to form “The Big Three” with Paul Pierce. Despite the league’s best record and combination of All-Stars, the Lakers were still favored going into the game. This marked Bryant’s fifth trip to the NBA Finals, and his first without Shaquille O’Neal.

Things were rough throughout the entire series for Bryant and the Lakers. One of the most devastating things included the team blowing a huge lead at home in Game 4. The Lakers were up by as many as 24 points before losing 97-91. Bryant made only six baskets good for 19 points. The Lakers were on the brink of elimination.

The team rallied the next game, but the Celtics were on a mission headed home. The team’s 17th title was in their grasp, and only Bryant and his Lakers teammates stood in between it. Not even Bryant’s heroic antics could save the series. The Celtics secured the largest margin of victory in Finals history in a 131-92 throttling.

Like most stars, Bryant could only take the loss in stride with plenty of work to do over the summer.

Confetti fell to the new parquet and the Celtics’ stereo blasted Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing.” Recently, Bryant shared the pain and misery of defeat he experienced while exiting the Celtics’ home-court amidst their win. In a recent interview with CBS Sports’ James Herbert, he spilled the beans (no pun intended) on how he coped with losing:

"“It was a tough two years in between,” Bryant told reporters. “I remember when we were losing, they played that song, that Journey song, and the whole arena started singing that song, and I hated that damn song for two years. Seriously, man. But I listened to the song every single day because it just reminded me of that feeling.”"

Luckily for Bryant, he was able to exact his revenge two years later. The Lakers won Game 7 on their floor in dramatic fashion. While the team is going through extremely tough times in his last season, Bryant forever savors the moment of an avenging victory.

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Like the sounds blaring from the speakers in Boston, Bryant remembers the joy of the sounds he heard in the Lakers’ title win:

"“Same thing with the Dropkick Murphys,” Bryant continued. “Like, I’m listening to the Dropkick Murphys all the time just because I wanted to remember that feeling, you know what I mean? To go back in 2010 and have that redemption — I was telling Metta [World Peace] on the bench when Paul Pierce was running back down, ‘You know, Metta, I’m so damn happy we won that 2010 Finals. I’d be sick a s— sitting here right now.’ And he felt the same way.”"

So the lesson Bryant drew from his losses is that while you may not hear the songs you love every day, but that doesn’t mean what you want to hear isn’t playing soon.

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