Michael Jordan always acknowledged Kobe Bryant as his heir and today, 19 years ago, they faced off for the last time.
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Kobe Bryant was always hailed as a prodigious talent. He stepped into the league straight out of high school and despite his young age, he shone brightly.
We mourn his loss every day. The only way to keep his memory alive is by looking back at his illustrious career.
Kobe looked up to only one guy in the league, the GOAT, his Airness, Michael Jordan. Each time they faced off it was a battle, a clash between two titans of the game.
Kobe Bryant drops 55 on Jordan and the Wizards, on March 29th, 2003
19 years ago, Kobe faced off against Michael Jordan for the last time. And in that game, Kobe had 55 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals and 9 threes including 43 points in the 1st half to beat his idol in MJ’s last game against the Lakers pic.twitter.com/g8vbsplPhG
— Tupac (@TupacAG) March 28, 2022
The last time the two best shooting guards of all time met; Kobe outdueled his Airness. Although we reckon that was due to Jordan approaching the end of his career.
Not to take away from Kobe, who shone brighter than the sun that night. The stat line will tell you all about it.
There was one incident, where Kobe drove in, and Michael took the charge. As he fell, Kobe stood up above him, MJ told him “Well everybody in the F***ing building knew you weren’t gonna pass”
Both of the players looked at each other and broke out in a fit of laughter. The video is iconic to this day and remains one of the fondest memories we have of them.
This courtside excerpt was detailed by Actor John Cusack, who happened to be right where the incident took place.
19 years ago today, Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan faced off for the last time in the NBA (2003)
Here’s what MJ said to Kobe during this infamous moment 😂pic.twitter.com/m0SKqWw9wG
— Kobe Highlights & Motivation (@kobehighlight) March 28, 2022