It is one of those days that is marked on the calendars of all fans of the National Basketball Association (NBA), Because exactly 15 years ago, on January 22, 2006, The name of Kobe Bryant he definitely got into the history books, consummating his best defending performance Los Angeles Lakers.
It all happened in front of a full Staples Center, in the state of California. Black Mamba he led a team without big gold and purple franchise figures, where they only stood out Lamar Odom and Slovenian Sasha Vujacic; at the front, the Toronto Raptors, Who had in their ranks a young man Chris Bosh, A veteran Jalen Rose and in Spanish José Manuel Calderón, Others.
It is true that in this 2005-2006 NBA season, Bryant led the list of top scorers, With an average of 35.4 games per game; but not even the most expert on the subject expected a day like this, before the astonished gaze of 19,000 fans at the stadium and millions on television.
The masterpiece of Kobe Bryant
The numbers he recorded on this historic day were epic where you look: 81 points in 42 minutes on the court, he got it right 28 of 46 field goals (60.9 percent effectiveness), with set of 13 triple attempts (53.8%) i 18 of 20 on free throws (90%).
“Not even in my dreams; that was something that just happened. It’s hard to explain. It’s just one of those things. It became something special. Sit here and say I understand what’s going on. to pass, it would be a lie “, Bryant said after the historic game with the Lakers.
The story behind Bryant’s miracle
While the then owner of the marjal, Jerry Buss, Stated that “That was like watching a miracle unfold”, And the Staples Center announcer, Lawrence Tanter he told attendees to keep their ballots as a sample of the story, what no one can believe is that this milestone was minutes away from happening.
Is that the then Lakers coach, Phil Jackson, Had taken Bryant out of the game with just a few minutes to go, when he carried 77 points, Remaining one of the brand of Wilt Chamberlain in 1968; it was then that his assistant Frank Hamblen the strategist warned him that if he did not put it on again “There would be a riot”. That’s how Kobe achieved its historic mark.
Thus, with this performance that gave the victory to his team by 122-104, the Mamba Negra establish a record that he was never able to match Michael jordan, And so far has not even been matched by Lebron James.