Lakers: Celebrating the 10th Anniversary of Kobe Bryant’s 81 Point Game

10 years ago to date, Lakers guard Kobe Bryant set the record for the second highest scoring performance of all time

It is hard to believe that Friday already marks the 10th anniversary of Kobe Bryant‘s 81 point game, the second greatest scoring outburst of all time, a record that will likely withstand the test of time.

In his second season without Shaquille O’Neal and his last season donning the number eight, Kobe truly took the league by storm during the 2005-2006 campaign.

In addition to dropping 81 points, the Black Mamba also recorded his memorable 62 points through three quarters against the Dallas Mavericks en route to averaging a career high 35.4 points per game on the year. Ironically, it was Steve Nash who took who the MVP trophy that year for the second straight season.

By now, you have seen the highlights of the game on repeat, but it’s unlikely that you’ve seen his shot chart from that storied night.

On January 22, 2006, Kobe scored from nearly every spot on the floor, hitting 7-of-13 threes, shooting 61 percent overall and 90 percent from the free throw line. Just look at all that green!

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Additionally, a little lesser known tidbit is that with a missed free throw in the second quarter, Kobe broke his streak of 62 straight makes.

Post-merger, the highest scoring performance was previously held by David Thompson, who scored 73 at the end of the 1978 season, a record Kobe crushed with ease. To put this into perspective, in NBA history, there are only five players who have scored 70 points or more in a game: Kobe Bryant, David Thompson, Elgin Baylor, David Robinson and Wilt Chamberlain.

Even Kobe had to take some time out of his busy schedule to sit down and appreciate the masterpiece of a game he had, watching and live-Tweeting it in 2013.

The outburst becomes even more impressive when you look at his quarter by quarter numbers.

For example, at the end of the first half, he only had 26 points. Using “only” in this case seems sarcastic, seeing that for some players, 26 points in a game would be a great contest, but makes sense when you realize it means Kobe scored 55 points in the second half.

Entering the second half trailing by 14, Kobe went absolutely bananas in the third, scoring 27 points on 73 percent shooting, giving the Lakers a six point advantage at the quarter’s end. In the fourth, his shooting percentage came back down to earth, hovering right around 50 percent, but he still managed to put up 28 points for a grand total of 81.

Despite scoring 19 point less than Wilt Chamberlain who scored 100 on March 2, 1962, basketball purists still argue that Kobe’s game was actually more impressive.

In a 2010 article put out by former ESPN stat man, John Hollinger, he broke down how Kobe’s night was better than Wilt’s because he was more efficient from the field, played less minutes and that Kobe’s performance was “more real.”

"In Chamberlain’s game, the Warriors intentionally fouled the Knicks in the final minute of play to get the ball back for another Chamberlain try at the century mark. Only on his third try did he get to 100. . .Chamberlain’s game ended up 169-147, Bryant’s 122-104. Obviously, there was a huge difference in the speed of play, and that meant Chamberlain had far more opportunities to score than Bryant did.Chamberlain’s game featured 233 field-goal attempts versus 164 for Bryant’s, and 93 free-throw attempts to 60 for Bryant’s."

Regardless, Kobe Bryant deserves all the spectacle and love that he has received throughout his retirement tour which is ironic because he never played the game for any of that.

It is going to be a sad day when Kobe Bryant laces them up for the final time in April but we will always have him to thank for the endless memories and joy he’s provided us. For old time’s sake, let’s hope that Kobe rewards us with at least one more vintage performance before the season’s end.

Next: Kobe Voted As All-Star Starter for 18th Straight Time

As always, be sure to check back in for more Lakers news, especially as we celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Kobe’s 81 point game!