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Lakers: Kobe Bryant Statue Outside of STAPLES Center

By Eric Yee

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Kobe Bryant announced that he will be retiring after the 2015-16 season, but what pose will his statue take when erected outside of STAPLES Center?

In Chicago, the Bulls have Michael Jordan skying over defenders in his classic Jumpman pose. In Utah, the Jazz have John Stockton firing a pass outside of Energy Solutions Arena. Even STAPLES Center already has its selection of statues with Kareem’s hook shot, Magic leading the break and Chick Hearn announcing the game.

With that in mind, how will Kobe Bryant’s amazing legacy be embodied in a single statue?

5-Rings

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If we are being completely honest, many of the mannerisms Kobe possesses, he inherited directly from Jordan: the fist pump, the wagging tongue, and who could forget the jumping fist pump.

Nonetheless, these moments wouldn’t be very Kobe-esque. You could very well cut and paste MJ into said statue with no problems.

That said, there are various instances in Kobe’s career where you thought, “Man, I’ll never forget this Kobe moment,” and after the Los Angeles Lakers defeated their rival Boston Celtics in 2010, Kobe gave the fans a variety of these.

The first happened towards the very end of the game. The clock was running out and Lamar Odom secured the rebound and fired the ball down the court. Kobe proceeded to chase the ball the length of the court, with an infectious grin sprawled across his face.

The next was moments later when Kobe scaled the scorers’ table, held his arms out, ball in hand, and screamed with pride to the Los Angeles crowd.

Both images show the sentiments that embody Kobe’s entire career: hard work, followed by utter relief.

Fans love Kobe because despite his physical limitations or his circumstance, he would never be outworked, and these two instances show that hard work pays.

“Greatness Personified”

The great thing about this game was the fact that both Kobe Bryant and Dwayne Wade were in their prime. Throughout his career, Kobe never truly had any rivals, but D Wade was the closest thing to it.

Down two points with 3.2 seconds to go, it was only right that Kobe go against conventional wisdom and go for the win at home.

Jab step, three dribbles, fading to the left off of one foot, bank shot for the win. It doesn’t get much more unconventional than that, but that is what made Kobe so great. He made amazing plays look routine on a nightly basis causing ecstasy in Los Angeles and chagrin everywhere else.

In the words of Jeff Van Gundy, Kobe standing there with his arms up, being flocked by teammates was truly, “Greatness personified.”

Kobe also used the celebration the following weeks, when he hit game winners against the Miluawkee Bucks and Sacramento Kings. This made fans think that he’d adopt this statue-esque pose for the long run, but they were wrong, as it was hardly seen thereafter.

81

Kobe didn’t necessarily have a patented move like Kareem or Hakeem Olajuwon. Sure, he made impossible fall away jumpers look pedestrian, but he also took guys to the rim, flew through the air and dunked on defenders regularly.

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Instead, Kobe had classic moments, none more impressive than his 81 point game against the Toronto Raptors.

We’ve all heard the stories. We’ve all seen the highlights. But the single moment from the second greatest scoring performance of all time wasn’t a single play, it was when Kobe walked off the court, hand raised in the form of a number one.

Even the letter the Lakers gave away to all fans in attendance at Sunday night’s game featured the historic image.

Kobe Bryant’s 81 points will undoubtedly go down as his number one moment of all time so what better a statue than this?

Next: Kobe Announces He Will Retire After This Season

Give us your ideas on what you think should be Kobe’s lasting image in statue form in the comments below or on Twitter @thelakeshowlife

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