On this day four year ago, Kobe Bryant destroyed the concept of underindulgence, reason and, for one night, age, by scoring 60 points in his final game, a 101-96 comeback win over the Utah Jazz where every single point was needed.
We could write more about that night, but we’ll kick it over to J.A. Adande, via this ESPN article, instead:
“It was spectacular. It was so self-indulgent. It was so ... Kobe. Kobe Bryant went out in the most Kobefied way possible. Sixty points on 50 shots. FIFTY SHOTS. He shot shot shot to the very end. He either defied his critics or proved them right. You're welcome to choose. There will be no more parsing of Kobe Bryant to be done around these parts. No more narratives because there's nothing left to write. No more arguing about how he should do it, or how his way compares to others. This is how he did it. Past tense. If the methods were debatable, the results were undeniable, and now finalized. They will hang his jersey on the wall in Staples Center and they will erect a statue of him in the plaza outside because of the way he did it.”
PS:The Warriors won their 73rd game on this night as well, but it was immediately overshadowed by Kobe’s technically meaningless final regular season game.
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