Kobe Bryant was one of the most fearless shotmakers in NBA history. Even if multiple defenders guarded him, the five-time NBA Champion was willing to shoot from wherever.
Former Los Angeles Lakers teammate Trevor Ariza shared an old text conversation he had with Bryant, showing him a picture of him shooting over three defenders, with Bryant responding by telling Ariza his teammates should have an easy putback if he misses.
Over 106 games as teammates, Ariza saw Kobe average 27.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 4.9 assists from 2007 to 2009. They won an NBA Championship together in 2009 but Ariza would leave the franchise that summer for the Houston Rockets and miss out on a chance to go back-to-back with Kobe and the Lakers in 2010.
Ariza averaged 8.3 points and 4.1 rebounds over that stretch, playing a key rotational role for the franchise in their 2009 Championship triumph. He would leave the franchise but return to the Lakers for their disastrous 2021-22 season, after which Ariza hasn’t been signed by any team in the league.
Kobe’s reaction to the picture isn’t even controversial because his propensity to shoot made opposing defenses often double him to try and alter his shot as much as they could. He wasn’t an efficient scorer, shooting 44.7% from the field for his career, but his willingness to take any and every shot to help his team win games made him a constant threat.
His offensive gravity would create easier opportunities for his teammates from hustle plays. If Kobe is being guarded by three players on his shot attempt, that means the Lakers have a 4-on-2 advantage when it comes to boxing out opponents for an offensive rebound if the shot is missed.
That sort of defense would not exist in the same form today as teams are more concerned about leaving three-point shooters open in the corner. Ariza was considered one of the shooters on the Lakers at the time because he would simply get wide-open threes to shoot because of Kobe.
Bryant is dearly missed by NBA fans around the world, so it was great to see his indomitable spirit come through on an innocuous text exchange with a teammate years ago.
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