Everyone remembers Kobe Bryant for being the man to take all the shots. He was a scoring machine on offense, it was something he was lauded for and also criticized for when the Los Angeles Lakers weren’t winning. But as amazing as Bryant was with his elite scoring, other aspects of his game have made him truly great.
Kobe Bryant was one of the best defenders ever at the guard position in the NBA’s history. Kobe made 12 total All-Defensive teams during his time in the league, 9 of which were NBA All-Defensive First Team selections. He could lock anyone up, and there are stories of him taking on the toughest assignments, like the time he wanted to guard Michael Jordan. He talked smack to Carmelo Anthony while guarding him as well. And even when injuries got to him in later seasons, he could still lock stars down.
Klay Thompson Revealed How Kobe Bryant Smothered Him Because He Dropped 41 Points On Him
By the time the 2014/15 NBA season came around, Kobe Bryant was truly in the twilight of his NBA career. The Mamba was still playing at a high level whenever he could, but injuries had taken a massive toll on him. And in 2014, Klay Thompson, one of the league’s upcoming star shooting guards, dropped 41 against Kobe and the Lakers. And that unlocked something in Kobe, as Klay himself recounted to Fox Sports.
“Regardless, Bryant, of course, wasn’t going to let Thompson get the best of him again. When he played the Warriors for his last game at Oakland’s Oracle Arena in January 2016, a 37-year-old Bryant completely smothered Thompson.
“‘I knew for a fact he was not going to let me go off for that game,’ said Thompson, who finished with 12 points on 4-for-14 shooting. I got his best defensive effort. I was like, ‘Man, I really can’t do anything against this guy.’ I couldn’t imagine what he was like in his prime.'”
In 4 games against the Lakers after dropping 41 on them, Klay Thompson never scored more than 19 points again. It’s a testament to what a competitor Bryant was that he could hold one of the league’s most lethal shooters down even as he was clearly well past his prime. The stories about Kobe will never get old, he truly was one of a kind.
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