Kobe Bryant's Most Memorable On-Court Moments

From his alley-oop to Shaquille O'Neal to his 60-point final game, here are the most memorable on-court moments from Kobe Bryant’s NBA career.

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The news Sunday rocked the sports world: NBA legend Kobe Bryant, the iconic Lakers guard, died in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California. His 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, was among seven others who perished in the crash. Kobe was 41.

It seems inconceivable that the Mamba could be gone. How could death come for someone who seemed immortal?

Bryant achieved god-like status in becoming one of the best to ever play basketball. He retired in 2016 after racking up a bevy of honors. Five NBA championships. Two Olympic golds. One MVP. Eighteen All-Star appearances. The list goes on on. Even those with no interest in sports know the name “Kobe.”

The impact of his death was tangible during Sunday’s Grammy Awards, which took place at Staples Center—the “house that Kobe built”—and included numerous tributes to the iconic baller. Once the youngest athletes to enter the NBA as a 17-year-old high schooler, Kobe’s hoops career played out with unparalleled drama—unforgettable highs and a few lows, too. We were fortunate to witness it.

Many of his most life-defining moments happened on the court. Here are some of the most memorable scenes from Kobe Bryant’s NBA career.

The Alley-Oop

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When you think of Young Kobe with the one-of-a-kind Kobe Fro, what play do you think of? Probably this one.

Kobe’s first two years in the league were tough, with the youngster scrapping for playing time and struggling to knock down shots consistently. But in his third year, he entered the starting lineup and started showing signs of the superstar he would become. By his fourth season in the Association, the world was his.

Before that season, the Lakers hired Phil Jackson—who had coached Michael Jordan and the legendary Bulls—as head coach. Kobe emerged as an All-Star and the squad became the best in the NBA behind his emergence and the continued dominance of big man and league MVP Shaquille O'Neal.

Their chemistry as the most dominant 1-2 punch in the league was on display when Kobe floated an alley-oop to Shaq in Game 7 of their first-round win over the 7-seed Portland Trailblazers. It put an exclamation point on the series and remains one of the most famous dunks in league history.

Behind Kobe, Shaq, and Phil, L.A. would claim three straight titles, the first coming in that very postseason. The Lakers topped Larry Bird’s Pacers 4-2, then Allen Iverson and the Sixers 4-1, then Jason Kidd and the Nets 4-0.


Though the alley-oop was his most memorable play during that first title run, it was then that Kobe’s prolific scoring ability began to crescendo. He averaged 28.5 points per game in 2000-01, a six-point improvement over his output the previous season.

Never Flinching vs. Matt Barnes

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It’s one of the funniest images in NBA history. In a March 2010 game with the Magic, noted agitator Matt Barnes pump-faked an inbounds pass at Kobe’s face. Despite the ball coming about 1 inch from his mug, Kobe didn’t flinch even a little bit.

“He’s crazy, but he’s not that crazy,” Kobe would later say. “So I didn’t bother flinching...It was a split second and I processed it pretty quickly. I realized he wasn’t going to do it. We laughed and joked about it a lot when we played together.”

Indeed, the two later teamed up when Barnes joined the Lakers from 2010-12.

“When I did the pass, if you look at me, I’m looking at the play developing, I’m not looking at him,” Barnes recently recalled. “And then I realized how close it got and that he didn’t flinch after the fact.”

Fearless.

Beefing With Shaq on Christmas

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For the 2003-04 season, the Lakers added aging NBA legends Karl Malone and Gary Payton to the roster. They were expected to win another ring, but the upstart Detroit Pistons—behind a lineup of tenacious underdogs—blazed through L.A. in five games. 

Tensions had mounted between all of the Lakers’ big names—including coach Phil Jackson—throughout that season. Jackson was let go after the loss, and the Lakers were essentially forced to choose between their two biggest stars, who had been jockeying for alpha dog status. They chose Kobe.

L.A. traded Shaq to the Miami Heat for Lamar Odom, Caron Butler, and Brian Grant, and Kobe turned down an offer from the neighboring Clippers—one which he seemed to be seriously considering—to re-sign with the Lakers for seven years. 

The two former teammates squared off for the first time on Christmas in 2005, as Shaq returned to Staples Center. Their reunion pregame was frosty, only slightly acknowledging each other. Shaq had 24 points and 11 boards, and Kobe missed a contested potential game-winning fadeaway 3 as the Heat won 104-102.

The Kobe-Shaq feud became one of the most entertaining personal rivalries in American sports history. When the Heat won the 2006 NBA title, Shaq famously rapped, “Kobe, tell me how my ass tastes.” But it was always clear there was some degree of mutual admiration between the legends. The two reconciled and even developed a friendship after their careers concluded.

81

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In 2005-06, the Zen Master surprisingly returned as Lakers coach—people thought he and Kobe were separated for good—and Kobe was at the peak of his powers. In January of that season, he went off for 81 points in a win over the Toronto Raptors, lighting up defender Jalen Rose and creating a running joke between Kobe and Jalen.

The Lakers were down by 14 at halftime and needed Kobe to put the team on his back. He scored 66 percent of his team's points in that game. It marked the second-most points scored in an NBA game ever, trailing only Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point explosion in 1962. 

Despite winning the NBA scoring title that season (35.4 PPG), the Mamba finished fourth in MVP voting, with Suns guard Steve Nash claiming the award. Following that season, Kobe switched from No. 8 to No. 24, his high school number and the one he had wanted all along.

Game-Winner vs. the Suns

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Kobe hit so many clutch shots in his career that it’s hard to pick a ‘most memorable.’ But his jumper against Steve Nash and the Suns in the 2006 playoffs was particularly iconic.

In the 2006 playoffs, the Suns—behind Nash, Amar’e Stoudemire, and Shawn Marion—were the No. 2 seed in the West, and they were expected to roll over the Lakers. Eventually, Phoenix did come out on top. But Kobe & Co. gave them all they could handle in a highly competitive first-round series that went seven games. 

The Lakers even held a 3-1 lead at one point. That lead came courtesy of a chaotic Game 4 in which L.A. won 99-98 in OT. First Kobe sent the game to extra time, then he hit a fadeaway in OT to win it. He ran down the court and pumped his fist before being mobbed by teammates.

Return to Olympic Gold

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We all remember what happened with the U.S. Olympic team in 2004 in Athens. That bronze medal was...not celebrated, to say the least.

In 2008, Kobe and the rest of Team USA were determined to return the US to basketball prominence as the best in the world. In the gold-medal game against the Gasol brothers and Spain, it was Kobe who provided the leadership for a star-studded American team. He hit huge shot after huge shot, including a big three with 6 minutes left and a clutch floater with just over a minute remaining that sealed the deal.

The U.S. didn’t lose a game the entire tournament and pulled away from Spain in Beijing for a 118-107 victory. Dwyane Wade was the squad’s leading scorer, and LeBron James and Chris Paul were among the others playing big roles, but it was clear that the veteran Kobe was the heart and soul of this squad.

Beating Boston in 2009

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Following a tough loss in six games to Boston in the NBA Finals, Kobe’s competitive spirit was fueled. His squad burst out of the gates in 2008-09 with a 21-3 record and again claimed the No. 1 seed in the West. Kobe was lights-out again, finishing as MVP runner-up to LeBron James—but this time, his team seized the top prize. 

They beat Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic in five games, claiming the league title with Kobe winning Finals MVP. His performance in that series was practically flawless, with averages of 32.4 points, 7.4 assists, 5.6 rebounds, 1.4 steals, and 1.4 blocks.

And the electricity continued into the next season. Kobe knocked down six 

game-winners in 2009-10 and also became the all-time leading scorer in Lakers history, surpassing Jerry West. Again the West’s top dog, LA had a rematch with Boston waiting in the Finals. It was an epic series that came down to Game 7, where the Celtics held a 13-point lead in the third quarter—but that was when Kobe took over.

He scored 10 points in the fourth and led the Lakers to a comeback win. After his late-game heroics, he was named Finals MVP yet again. Kobe would call this one the “most satisfying” of his five titles.

2 FTs on a Torn Achilles

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No matter how hard you work to fortify your body, Father Time comes for all of us. Kobe was among the top guards in the league into his 30s—until multiple knee and shoulder injuries thwarted him.

The most memorable injury of his career occurred in 2013, when The Heatles were running the league, as a 34-year-old Kobe faced the upstart Warriors. With L.A. down 109-107 late in the game, Kobe drove against Harrison Barnes and fell to the ground, immediately grabbing and rubbing the back of his left leg. The worst possible outcome had occurred: Kobe had torn his Achilles, a brutal injury, the same one that has recently afflicted DeMarcus Cousins and John Wall.

In true Mamba fashion, he tried to walk it off. He limped up and down the court. A torn Achilles was no match for his will. The game hung in the balance—there was no way he was coming out. He stayed in to connect on both of his free throws, which proved vital in a 2-point win.

Though that injury ended his season, the Lakers gave him a two-year, $48.5 million extension in the offseason.

60 in the Sendoff

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Kobe, recognizing his physical decline, decided to retire after the 2015-16 season, and that campaign turned into a celebration of his career, a victory lap during which his compatriots honored him. On the court, however, that final season was not a great one for the Lakers. The team finished 17-65—again setting a new mark for franchise futility—and Bryant had one of his worst statistical campaigns. He shot only 36 percent from the court and 28.5 percent from 3-point range, well below his career averages. 

But it ended in perfect fashion. You couldn’t write a storybook ending any better. 

In the season finale, the Lake Show faced the Utah Jazz, and Kobe absolutely went off. He was unconscious! He racked up 60 points -- the most anyone had scored all season -- and was at his best when it mattered most. With a tight game going back and forth in the waning moments, Kobe outscored Utah 23-21 in the fourth quarter, guiding his team to one last victory. 101-96.

He was nearly 38 years old. At the end of the game, he delivered a famous farewell speech that ended with “Mamba Out.”

Rest in peace, Mamba.

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