Kobe Bryant
Every once in a while, a player comes along that transcends things. Not just the sport in which they play as they reach much larger areas. Kobe Bryant was one of those players. There have only been a few to be quite honest.
By far, one of the greatest players of all-time in the NBA as well as one of the greatest athletes of all time as well. Bryant came to the Lakers as a young kid straight out of Lower Merion High School. There was something special about him. Jerry West saw something in this kid and he knew that he had to have him come to the Lakers. The rest is all history.
At first, Bryant wasn’t getting the playing time that he desired. After all, he was just a kid playing in a league filled with players with supreme talent. Kobe didn’t spend the time sitting on the bench and just watching. He was learning and absorbing.
Slowly but surely things were changing for the Lakers as they had also just acquired Shaquille O’Neal and the team was winning games yet they weren’t a championship team just yet. Other things would have to happen, like the great coach Phil Jackson becoming head coach of the team.
The world saw as the Lakers had won three consecutive titles from 2000-2002 and took their place in not just Lakers but NBA history as well. Everyone saw how Bryant improved his game heavily as he got better with each season and became an integral part of the Lakers’ success as he and Shaq soon became the best combination in all of the NBA. They were Batman and Robin for a short time but then grew to be Superman and Batman.
Once again, the torch would be passed on. Kobe would become the leader for the Lakers as Shaq would be dealt to the Miami Heat in the offseason of 2004-05. Phil Jackson was head coach no more and things had surely changed for the franchise as hard times had once again arrived as they always seem too but hard times bring great things and the Black Mamba emerged and would reign throughout the NBA.
Bryant would lead the league in scoring for back-to-back seasons in 2005-06 and 2006-07 averaging over 30 points per game. In 2007-08 Bryant would become the league’s MVP. Kobe would be named to the All NBA’s First from 2002 -2004, 2006-2013 and to the NBA’s All-Defensive First Team from 2000, 2003, 2004, and from 2006-2011.
Kobe would lead the Lakers back to the NBA Finals in 2007-08 where they would lose to the Boston Celtics. He would once again bring them back the next two seasons where they would defeat the Orlando Magic and the Boston Celtics solidifying himself among Laker and NBA greats and grasping a special place within the Lakers dynasty.