Kobe Bryant had unwavering faith in his ability, but it also led to one of the most humiliating moments of his career. In the 1997 playoffs, the rookie guard shot four airballs in the fourth quarter and overtime of the Lakers’ season-ending loss to the Jazz. His performance in crunch time led to widespread ridicule, which enraged him.
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Therefore, he took his frustration out on Baron Davis and the UCLA Bruins’ other stars in a scrimmage game.
During an appearance on the Straight Game Podcast, the former Warriors star spoke about Bryant’s bounce back from the humiliation he endured following his infamous flameout against the Jazz. Davis revealed that in a pickup game at UCLA in the 1997 offseason, the teenager completely obliterated the Bruins stars.
The beatdown was so brutal that Davis even questioned his worthiness to be in the NBA. He said,
“Kobe was different bro… He came up to UCLA one time… after the airball [game]… And you know, Kobe, he had to be in the lab after that. So he came up to UCLA [where] we had Toby Bailey, we had J. R. [Henderson], Jelani [McCoy], you know, all the dudes…”
“And I don’t know what was wrong with Kobe that day, but he was mad at somebody… Bro, he was tearing everybody up in the gym,” Davis added.
Davis noted that despite being in the NBA, Bryant was either younger or the same age as the Bruins’ stars. His vengeful display left everybody questioning whether they were ready to turn pro. To the college stars, the guard’s performance was an eye-opener. But to him, it was proof that the work Kobe was putting in after the infamous airball game was yielding the results he had hoped for.
Kobe Bryant detailed how he changed his training methods after the ‘airball game’
Kobe’s humiliating end to his exceptional rookie season led to a career-altering change. In an interview with Patrick Bet-David in 2019, Bryant claimed that his four airballs against the Jazz in the playoffs helped him realize that he lacked the strength and conditioning to perform well in the playoffs after a long and arduous regular season. He said,
“In high school you play 35 games max, week in-between, spaced out. In the NBA it’s back-to-back-to-back-to-back-to-back-to-back. I didn’t have the legs. You look at the [airballs against the Jazz], every shot was on line, but every shot was short. Right? I got to get stronger. I got to train differently.”
The realization triggered an instant change in his training methods. He focused on developing his lower body strength to ensure his shots don’t fall short late in the season. Bryant said,
The weight training program that I’m doing, I got to tailor it to an 82-game season so when the playoffs come around my legs are stronger and that ball gets there. I look at it with rationale and say, okay well, the reason why I shot air balls is because my legs aren’t there…well, next year, they’ll be there. That was it.”
The following year, his numbers improved slightly, but in 1999, he truly reaped the rewards of his hard work. He was thrust into the starting lineup and his scoring average ballooned from 8.7 points per game to 19.8. The Lakers lost in the second round to the eventual champions, the Spurs. However, it was evident that they were on the precipice of greatness.
In 2000, Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal led the franchise to their first championship in 12 years, before guiding them to two more on the trot to complete a three-peat.
