Los Angeles Lakers: Top 8 Kobe Bryant moments
By Jason Elbaum
With Kobe Bryant set to have both of his numbers retired at Staples Center on Monday night, let’s take a look back at the eight best moments of Kobe’s 20-year career with the Lakers.
It’ll be a ceremony that no Los Angeles Lakers fan will want to miss on Monday night at halftime of the team’s game against the defending champion Golden State Warriors. Kobe Bryant will solidify his name in NBA history when he takes the floor to watch both of his numbers be unveiled and hung in the rafters of the Staples Center.
Bryant will become the Lakers’ 10th player to have his jersey retired by the team, joining Hall-of-Famers Wilt Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor, Gail Goodrich, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O’Neal, James Worthy, Jerry West and Jamaal Wilkes.
Kobe’s career started at just 17 years old when the Lakers traded Vlade Divac to the Charlotte Hornets for the draft rights to a scrawny high school kid from Philadelphia. Bryant would go on to lead the Lakers to five championships with two Finals MVPs while collecting 18 All-Star selections, 11 first-team All-NBA selections, nine First Team All-Defense selections and the league’s MVP award in 2008.
After finally deciding to hang it up in 2016, Bryant still acts as an informal advisor to the Lakers front office when it comes to basketball decisions, admitting that he is “just a phone call away” whenever Magic Johnson needs him.
Monday night will be a celebration of Kobe’s illustrious playing career and loyalty to the franchise that took a chance on him when he was still a teenager. In honor of Kobe’s first number he wore with the Lakers, let’s take a look back at eight of Kobe’s greatest moments in the purple and gold.