preface
Could he have had more championships without breaking with O'Neill? This is the most controversial topic on the Internet, from the Lakers' bench to the leader of the team, his life has been questioned.
Even though he was scolded as a singles monster and an iron king, he never surrendered to others, and used 5 championships to perfectly interpret his unique mamba spirit.
Entering the NBA
In April 1996, Bryant officially announced to the outside world at a press conference at the high school arena that he would be in the NBA draft, a decision that immediately caused an uproar in the entire gymnasium.
But it didn't take long for the Kobe family to be questioned and accused by the outside world, and many bad media believed that Kobe was too arrogant, and even rumored that it was Kobe's parents who wanted their son to go to the NBA to make money, so Kobe Bryant made this decision.
But these doubts and accusations, Kobe Bryant also expected it long ago, before Garnett announced that he skipped college and directly participated in the NBA draft, Kobe Bryant had already made up his mind to enter the NBA directly as a high school student.
At the same time, he also hopes to help high school players open the door to entering the NBA, and before that, Garnett often suggested to Kobe Bryant as a passer-by, hoping that he could finish college before entering the draft.
Because the NBA is very cruel, but no matter how the Wolf King persuades, it cannot shake Kobe's determination to enter the NBA, and in the 1996 draft, Kobe was selected by the Hornets with the 13th pick in the first round, and then traded to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Kobe's 20-year purple-gold legendary career also kicked off, and the Lakers also signed the high-profile super center - Shaqui O'Neal in the summer of this year, and the OK combination was officially established at this time.
In the team's confrontation training, Kobe Bryant often completes a violent dunk on the opponent's head, which puts a lot of pressure on the veterans in the team.
But Kobe's self-acting, solipsistic personality never gave anyone face, leading some team veterans to have great opinions about the new league rookie.
And the young and vigorous Kobe Bryant did not care about other people's eyes at all, and never adopted other people's opinions, but soon, Kobe Bryant paid a painful price for his youthful frivolity.
Kobe and several NBA players, playing on the beach near Venice, the street ball game held in the surrounding stadium instantly attracted Kobe's attention, and when Kobe wanted to sign up for the game, he was stopped by the NBA veteran next to him.
He advised Kobe, as a professional player, not to play wild ball casually, and Kobe, who was addicted to ball, completely ignored the advice of the veterans around him and resolutely wanted to warm up for two games.
As a result, in a shot by a dunk teammate, Kobe Bryant failed to grasp the basket in time, causing his back to land first in the process of falling, and fell violently to the ground causing a broken wrist, and he missed preseason training camp.
And this training is very important for Kobe and the entire Lakers, because everyone on the team must adapt to O'Neal, a top center
This absence means that Kobe will spend more time to find his place in the rotation, so Kobe has been playing as a substitute at the beginning of his NBA career.
"Bryant was the strongest opponent in my career, I remember a game where we scored 61 points as a team, and he scored 62 points alone, and he didn't even play in the fourth quarter." This is Novitsky's evaluation of Kobe Bryant in an interview with reporters.
On November 3, 96, in the Lakers vs Timberwolves game, Kobe played 6 minutes as a substitute, scoring 0 points, 0 assists, 1 turnover and 1 foul, which was the first game of his career.
Since then, Bryant has gradually realized how cruel the NBA competition is, and how small he is, everyone has a glorious past, and no one will take this Pennsylvania No. 1 high school student seriously.
But it is worth mentioning that at the dunk contest that year, Kobe Bryant came out of nowhere and won the slam dunk contest with his excellent performance, successfully winning the slam dunk contest and becoming the youngest slam dunk king in history.
In the final game of the season, the Lakers trailed the Utah Jazz 1-3 in the second round of the playoffs, and in the final moments of Game 5, the Sharks were sent off for fouls, and the burden of leading the team to victory fell to Kobe.
With only 45 seconds left, Kobe Bryant made a three-point shot, but made a three-point shot, missing the last chance of Jedi to turn the game.
Then, in the last minute of overtime, Kobe Bryant missed two more three-pointers in a row that could equalize the score, causing the Lakers to be cut off by the Utah Jazz.
When Kobe was still ashamed of the entire team for his poor performance, O'Neal stood up to support Kobe at this time: "He is the only guy who has the courage to stand up and shoot, although he missed all of them, but his responsibility and responsibility are worthy of our admiration." ”
In his second year, Bryant became the team's sixth man, and his scoring average skyrocketed as he played more minutes.
At the same time, he was also selected to the NBA All-Star Team for the first time in this year's All-Star Vote, becoming the youngest All-Star Game starter in NBA history.
In the All-Star Game, Kobe took the initiative to ask Ying to defend Jordan alone, and repeatedly drank that his teammates did not need to block, and finally Jordan only scored 23 points in the entire game, and the young Kobe Bryant cut 18 points, and Kobe's paranoid competitiveness was revealed again at this moment.
In 1998, Jordan won his second triple-game with the Bulls and won his sixth career championship ring, and he was ready to end his spectacular career without any challenges in the NBA.
And the players who once competed with Jordan are also going downhill in their careers, so that the Jordan era is gradually coming to an end, and the entire NBA has ushered in a new era, and who will be the next player who can inherit Jordan's mantle?
"I'm not going to compare anyone to Jordan, but if I had to answer that question, Kobe is the closest player to Jordan, but in the league today, no one can get close to Kobe." This is the evaluation of Kobe Bryant when the wolf king Garnett was interviewed by reporters.
In the 98-99 season, Bryant officially became the Lakers' starter, and as his playing time increased, his average points per game continued to skyrocket.
Bryant started 50 regular-season games throughout the season, averaging 37.9 points, 19.9 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists, making him the second ace player for the Lakers besides O'Neal.
But in the playoffs, the Lakers were swept out 4-0 by the Spurs, while O'Neal has been swept out of the playoffs three times four times since joining the team, in order to transform the team.
In the summer of '99, the Lakers signed the hero who helped the Bulls build two dynasties, and Zen master Phil Jackson served as the team's head coach, and he was also a pioneer in bringing triangular tactics into the NBA.
The leadership of the Lakers has always believed that Zen Master can create miracles again and help the Lakers build a dynasty again, and Zen Master, after leaving the Bulls with Jordan and Pippen, once again has a powerful OK combination of two supernovas, Kobe and O'Neal.
In the summer of that year, Shark O'Neal trained to lose weight, taking his blocking and defensive skills up a notch, and Kobe's masochistic training and his paranoid competitiveness made many media praise him as Jordan's successor.
In the 99-00 regular season, O'Neal's interior dominance left the league defenseless, and Kobe Bryant averaged 22.5 points per game and was named to the All-NBA Defensive Team.
Coupled with the triangle offense brought by the Zen master, the Lakers were invincible in the regular season, directly playing a 67-15 record, ranking first in the West and entering the playoffs.
In the playoffs, the Lakers easily defeated the Kings and Suns, and fought the Blazers in seven games in the Western Conference Finals, successfully reaching the Finals, which was the first time in Kobe's career and the second time that the Shark O'Neal reached the Finals.
Facing the Pacers led by Reggie Miller, the OK combination led the team to a 2-1 lead at one point, but then Bryant injured his ankle and O'Neal was sent off for 6 fouls, which gave the Pacers a glimmer of hope.
But Kobe Bryant, with his extraordinary willpower, forced out with a second-degree foot injury, and finally led the Lakers to win the first championship of his career with a 4-2 aggregate score against the Pacers, but FMVP belongs to the big shark O'Neal.
After Game Six, Bryant stood in front of the audience and gestured his hands back and forth, as if telling everyone that this would be the first of many future championships.
In the 00-01 season, the Lakers played 46 minutes against the Grizzlies, scoring 26 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, successfully scoring his first triple-double in the regular season, and teaming up with O'Neal to play a 56-win record and enter the playoffs again.
In the playoffs, the Lakers swept the Blazers, Kings and Spurs to reach the Finals again, this time against the Philadelphia 76ers led by Iverson.
But Kobe and O'Neal didn't seem to put them in their eyes, but then Iverson caught Kobe and O'Neal off guard in the first Finals with a historic-level performance.
But after the loss of this game, the Lakers completely woke up, and the OK combination joined hands with the team to win four consecutive cities, successfully cutting the 76ers under the horse and winning the championship again.
Bryant played in 68 regular-season games this season, averaging 28.5 points, 5.8 rebounds and 5.0 assists in 40.9 points per game, but FMVP still belongs to O'Neal.
In the 01-02 All-Star Game, Kobe Bryant started in the West, frantically cutting 31 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists, and was successfully elected the MVP of the NBA All-Star Game.
He played in 80 regular-season games for the Lakers that season, averaging 25.2 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game, and was named to the All-NBA First Team with O'Neal, and led the team to a 58-24 record, easily reaching the playoffs.
In the playoffs, the Lakers overcame all the difficulties, and finally made it to the Finals again, and this time the opponent from the finals was the Nets led by Jason Kidd.
The Lakers swept the Nets 4-0 and successfully won a three-pate and completed the dynasty hegemony, which is also the fifth time in NBA history that there has been a three-peat.
At this time, Kobe was only 23 years old, and his future was immeasurable, but everyone in the world knew that the protagonist of the Lakers dynasty was not him.
In the summer of 2002, Bryant trained like the devil, strengthening his back-to-back singles technique and three-point shooting ability, while gaining 7 kilograms of muscle, allowing his body and technique to be refined again.
In the 02-03 season, Kobe Bryant scored more than 40+ points in nine consecutive games, and in the game against the Washington Wizards, Kobe scored 55 points in 41 minutes to lead the team to a 108-94 victory, completing the last meeting of his career with Michael Jordan.
And Kobe averaged 30 points per game throughout the season, successfully surpassing O'Neal to become the team's chief scorer, but in the final Western Conference semifinals, the Lakers still lost to the Spurs with a total score of 2:4 and missed the Finals.
In the summer of 2003, Lakers management brought in Carl Malone and Gary Payton, and was bound to regain the championship.
But in July, the Eagle County incident was exposed by the media, and Kobe was embroiled in endless lawsuits, and Kobe Bryant hovered between the courtroom and the court all season, basically not participating in any team training.
Therefore, the Lakers were seriously inadequate, and finally in the Finals, the most luxurious Lakers team in history lost to the Pistons 1:4 in the Finals and missed the championship again.
And Kobe's assertive and selfish way of playing caused O'Neal's strong dissatisfaction, so the conflict between the two intensified, and even in an interview, O'Neal publicly commented on Kobe's scandal, stepping on Kobe's red line, and the relationship between the two officially broke off.
The original brotherhood OK combination officially ended in 2004, but at this time, Kobe was only 26 years old, while O'Neal was 32 years old, and discerning people knew in their hearts what kind of decisions the Lakers would make.
So after O'Neal left, Zen Master, who had long played peacemaker on the team, also chose to leave, and Payton was also traded to the Heat.
Not only that, Kobe and Marlon also often quarreled for Vanessa, which made the irascible Malone directly choose to retire in place, and the former F4 is now only Kobe Bryant alone.
In Kobe's first season alone, the Lakers played the worst record in recent times, failing to even make the playoffs, while the Sharks, who were far away in the Miami Heat, were mixed.
In the 05-06 season, Zen Master put aside the resentment between him and Kobe Bryant and came to the Lakers again to coach, and Kobe Bryant slowly came out of the shadow of failure.
In a game against the Mavericks, Bryant only played in the first three quarters, frantically chopping 62 points, 8 rebounds and 3 steals, and his score alone even exceeded the Mavericks' total in the first three quarters, successfully going down in history.
In the game against the Raptors at the beginning of 06, Kobe Bryant started 41 minutes and scored 81 points alone, setting his NBA career record for the highest score per game, which is also the highest single game in Lakers history.
Without Chamberlain's 100 points per game, Bryant would have written history again in the NBA, where he faced this season's MVP Steve Nash in an April 30 game against the Phoenix Suns.
Bryant posted 24 points, 4 rebounds and 8 assists, and contributed a double-kill in the final minute of the game and in overtime, playing in 80 regular season games for the Lakers throughout the season, averaging 35.4 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 4.5 assists.
He was named the season's scoring champion and was named to the All-Season First Team and All-Defensive Team. Now Kobe has no one to stop him. But he was too tired to be alone.
Watch his former good brother O'Neal, who won another championship with Wade with the Heat, while he fell to his knees in the first round of the playoffs.
Kobe's heart is full of unwillingness, he has always proved to the world that he is not weaker than the big shark, but he is always compared by the big shark, Kobe's paranoid competitiveness, and the spirit of never giving up are doomed, he will not be satisfied with this.
So in the summer of the offseason, Kobe Bryant devoted himself to training, and at three o'clock in the morning every day, Kobe would get out of bed, come to the team's training ground, and start shooting practice.
Because only continuous shooting can make his mood relaxed, at this time, Kobe silently set a goal in his heart.
Not only do he have to be better than O'Neal, not just make the playoffs, but he wants to win the highest honor - the O'Brien Cup. To be the best basketball player ever.
In the decade from 1996 to 2006, Kobe Bryant has always played in the No. 8 jersey, as for the reason for wearing the No. 8 jersey.
Before he became a professional footballer, he participated in Adidas' training camp, where the number of his jersey was 143, and 8 was the sum of 1, 4, and 8, and the number 8 was also the number of the jersey that Kobe Bryant wore in Italy as a child.
But the number he most wanted to wear at that time was actually No. 33, but the No. 33 jersey that Abdul-Jabbar wore during his time with the Lakers had already hung over the Staples Arena.
After losing to the Suns in the playoffs, Kobe Bryant said that he would change to the No. 24 jersey next season, which attracted huge attention from many media and fans at the time, and they were speculating about the reason why Kobe changed to the No. 24 jersey.
But at the time, Kobe was playing in the playoffs, and the media could not extract useful information from his mouth, so he found Zen Master, who explained that he wanted to surpass Jordan and become the first person in the NBA.
Because No. 23 is Jordan's patent, and 24 is always more than 23, it wasn't until the end of the season that Kobe Bryant positively explained the reason for changing his jersey: the meaning of No. 24 is 24 hours, and Kobe wants to put all his energy into basketball.
This is the reason why Kobe chose No. 24, Kobe won 3 championships in the first ten years wearing the No. 8 jersey, but the protagonist each time is not him, and next, the era that really belongs to the No. 24 Kobe Bryant, will soon sweep the entire league.
If you like it, please like and follow, in the next issue I will bring you the third chapter of Kobe: The End of the Black Mamba