8. Points 3-4; 9:19 Remaining, 1st Quarter
There’s so much beauty in the fakes of Kobe Bryant whenever he’s in the zone and he put that display early on in this game. The threat of Kobe shooting was obviously going to be the defender’s first priority when Bean got the ball right inside the top of the key. To diminish that threat in the mind of the defense, though, Kobe fakes the pass and gets the Raptors thinking that the shot might not be coming. All he needs is that one little thought to then face up with his man and the basket and then rise up for the silky jumper.
7. Points 20-21; 1:32 Remaining, 2nd Quarter
Bryant was always adept and will likely always have the ability to hit shots off the dribble that most players in the NBA aren’t capable of. And while this shot may not look overwhelmingly impressive on the surface, there’s real genius in how Kobe gets this shot and knocks it down.
For one, how quickly Kobe pulls up to take the shot is just absolutely staggering. The defender can’t react nearly quick enough to get a quality contest on the shot and that’s a near death sentence when matched up with the Mamba. That’s only worsened by Kobe simply knocking down a tough look while being a bit off-balance. It’s just a wonderful move leading to a wonderful shot.
Next: No. 6-5