Last night in San Antonio two things happened. One was great and breathtaking, the other predictable, and neither had to do with Michael Jordan’s hallowed scoring record.
Dec 12, 2014; San Antonio, TX, USA; Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant (24) shoots a free throw against the San Antonio Spurs during the second half at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
In overtime the Lakers were trailing, closing in on another defeat, another game they let get away. Enter Nick Young who was having a brilliant night making shots. He sank a three pointer with defenders draped all over him and the clock running out. The ball sailed quietly through the net. His face became a canvas of joy as he rushed towards his teammates, soaking up this moment captured on ESPN.
Lakers fans in the crowd cheered to distraction. Spurs fans covered their faces: oh, no.
Those are the facts.
But this happened too: The game ended and the Lakers were winners. But in the arena, Nick Young was just a footnote. He was ‘Laker-guy’ who won the game for them.
Kobe Bryant was the one cheered and serenaded. He walked off the San Antonio court and towards the locker room as a cavalcade of affectionate echoes trailed behind him. Even though he was not the hero, it did not matter to the faithful. His presence represented something far greater than one moment in a game in San Antonio, in mid-December. He was the hero of his career.
If his 19 years has been nothing more than a war- a physical war, a mental war, a war against time- then it has been a battle he has valiantly won. And to Kobe fans, that is all that matters. So they yelled and sang and echoed his name before packing up their things and going off into the night, happy as could be.
This is the reality. 19 years in the NBA has created a Kobe loyalty. Fans pack arenas to see a glimpse of him before he is gone for good. They do not care he is shooting 38%, a career low. They do not care he is rebuked and despised by the analytics crowd who consider him a destroyer of beautiful basketball. They do not care he may take 27 shots in a game. They do not care that by the fourth quarter his body is physically exhausted so by game’s end walking hurts. They do not care that he feels 36 and possibly even 40. Every single night.
His resurrection is enough to satiate them. He refuses to acknowledge suffering so why should they? Besides, his absence last year deprived them of his possibilities. Kobe Bryant is playing this year and they want to marinate in it.
Regardless of the Lakers record (7-16), their fans fill up road arenas. Some are fans of the team, having been passed down this loyalty from their fathers. Many more are Kobe fans.
It has always been a delicate balance for the front office, managing the two separate fan bases. Lakers fans want what is good for the organization and generally take a long view approach for how the team should proceed. Kobe fans live in a bubble. They saturate themselves in the moment. They want right now and are aggressive in saying so. They don’t want their hero marginalized nor criticized. They are glad and proud Kobe went off on his epic rant. See how the team played afterwards. It worked.
Kobe is to Lakers fans what rain is on a bridge; too much of it and things get treacherous. While many Lakers fans appreciate Kobe and what he has meant to the organization, they are ready to move on when he retires.
Dec 9, 2014; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Tim Duncan (21) shoots the ball over Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) during the first half at EnergySolutions Arena. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports
Kobe’s impact is noticeable in arenas in which he should be invisible or booed. The San Antonio Spurs have been the Lakers rivals these past 19 years.
Kobe was drafted in 1996. Tim Duncan was drafted in 1997. Duncan won his first title in 1999 after beating the Lakers in the Western Conference Semi-Finals. Kobe won his first title in 2000.
In 2001, the Lakers beat the Spurs in the Western Conference Finals and went on to repeat as champions. The Lakers would beat the Spurs in the playoffs three more times. In 2002 and 2004 in the Western Conference Semi-Finals. In 2008, in the Western Conference Finals.
The Spurs would beat the Lakers in 2003 in the Western Conference Semi-Finals. And in the first round in 2013. So, it was odd to hear cheers for Kobe in an arena in which the home team had their heart broken by Kobe Bryant. But there they were, cheering their throats dry.
It happened in Boston too, Lakers fans, amid the splash of that tacky green, cheering for Kobe MVP. Washington felt less like the nation’s capital and more like a home game for the Lakers. As did Atlanta which has the most Kobe fans outside of Los Angeles. In Detroit, fans nearly gave him a standing ovation when he went to the free throw line.
There is nothing about this that will change in the next year and a half as he comes closer and closer to exile. Kobe has often said when he leaves, he will leave. Period. End of story. No hanging around for nostalgia reasons. No second guessing, Magic Johnson style. He will just disappear. Which is what his fans are afraid of and know is possibly true.
It is why they pack the arenas, why they ignore Nick Young for now. Kobe is the last of a dying breed. He is almost gone.