With a few weeks left to go until training camp, it’s difficult to imagine the last chapter of Kobe Bryant‘s career upon us. It’s difficult to believe that he has been in the NBA longer than than his lifetime without it. He will be entering his 19th year in the league. He was drafted as a 17 year-old player.
I wanted to show footage of a player well before he was drafted in 1996.
Long before the internet became mainstream, there was real game tape. There was no YouTube. Fortunately, someone had a recording of Kobe Bryant scoring 43 points as a high school player. He was listed at 6’6″, but as skinny as they come.
With his forays to the hoop, pull up jumpshot, body control, and ball-handling, it’s easy to see he was a star in the making.
The strangest thing to notice is, his offensive game hasn’t really seemed to change from his high school footage until now. Yes, he added numerous skills to his offense repetoire, but the shots in that game are the same shots he took at his prime as a Laker, up until his last healthy year.
Personally, I have never seen a player with that level of skill, athleticism, body control, and size in a player at such a young age. LeBron James is the current best player in the league, but he dominated high school in a different way. It involved more playmaking, physical size, explosiveness, and a better arching jumpshot. Even then, he left high school as a 19-year old. At that age, Kobe Bryant was already knocking on the door of being an All-Star player.
Kobe Bryant was in Germany for knee treatment recently. He studied Paul Pierce’s game to adjust to the upcoming season. I can’t help but think there’s something left in the tank for one more explosive foray to the hoop, just like he did when he was a 16-year old kid.