In the summer of 2008, Kobe Bryant was already a living legend in the NBA. At the peak of his powers that summer, Bryant’s place at the top of the league was unquestioned at the time and that remained true in the Olympics when he was tapped as the team captain. But even for a mega-star like Kobe Bryant, there are moments where confrontation is necessary. Former USA coach Mike Krzyzewski had one of these moments with Kobe in 2008 when he was forced to confront the Lakers star for forcing ill-advised jump shots.
“It was the last exhibition game before we went to Beijing,” said Krzyzewski. “Kobe Bryant was our leader and best player but in that specific game, he just started taking horrible shots. My players, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, looked at me like ‘what are you gonna do?’ I brought Kobe in, showed him the shots. ‘You know, you’re taking Lakers shots when you have a big lead, you’re not taking Olympic shots trying to win a Gold medal. I showed him, I said ‘they are not good shots.”‘
Most superstars would probably resist being held accountable in this way, but Kobe didn’t take issue with the coach pulling him aside. In fact, Bryant agreed with Krzyzewski’s assessment and promised to be better.
“He looked me in the eye and says ‘is that all?’ He said ‘I agree they are really bad shots coach, I won’t take them.’ And I was so relieved.”
From then on, Kobe adjusted his game and started playing within the flow of the offense. While his numbers were down compared to his Lakers tenure, he was undoubtedly the best player on the team that year and his leadership from start to finish helped set the stage for ultimate success.
Kobe Bryant Was A Beast In The Olympics
Over a span of eight Olympic games that summer, Kobe was on another level of dominance with a stat line of 15.0 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in just 23.5 minutes per game that included a 20-point, six-assist performance in the Gold medal game. While that was probably the height of Kobe’s Olympic run, it wasn’t his only appearance in the international event. He played for Team USA again in 2012, where he put up very similar numbers en route to Team USA’s second-straight tournament victory.
Perhaps the most baffling part of Kobe’s Team USA run is his undefeated record in the games. If you combine wins in two Olympics and the FIBA Americas Championships, he’s 26-0 all-time on the world stage. Whatever you want to say about Kobe, his career, or his shot selection, Bryant was a winner and the results speak for themselves.
Did Kobe Have Poor Shot Selection?
The 2008 Olympics is probably the most glaring example we have of Kobe’s poor shot selection. Instead of deferring to his teammates, he tried to play hero ball until Coach K called him out. In leaked audio from the games that summer, even LeBron James can be heard telling Kobe to chill out and go easy on his shot selection.
Of course, this was a common theme for Kobe throughout his career. While he was an exceptional passer and playmaker, Bryant was never shy about shooting the rock and whenever the game was on the line, he had a total monopoly on the basketball. Known for his infamous fadeaway jump shot and mid-range isolation game, Kobe was a master at taking those tough shots and he was one of the few who could make them consistently. Even so, Team USA wasn’t going to tolerate that playstyle when there were so many other great players on the team.
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