5 Best Playoff Series of Kobe Bryant’s Career
By Jacob Rude
2. Orlando, 2009 NBA Finals – 32.4 points, 7.4 assists, 5.6 rebounds
It’s hard to list a Finals performance as not the top one. His performance in 2009 was nothing short of great. From the get-go, Bryant was dialed in, putting up 40 points in Game 1. While he cooled off the next four games, he still scored at least 29 points in each game and had eight assists in three of the four games.
The reason this falls below our top performance is nitpicking, but Bryant was not an efficient scorer in the series. He shot just 43% from the field but still put up 27 shots a game. Again, it’s a small thing, and there’s nothing to say this wasn’t one of the greatest performances of his career. The drive for redemption was evident and Bryant would not be denied in his return to the Finals.