After a seven-year-long wait and a finals loss the year before, Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers were NBA champions once again. Defeating the Orlando Magic with a 4-1 gentleman’s sweep, Bryant won his first Finals MVP, an award that had eluded him for his whole career up to that point. 15 years since that historic night, Vanessa Bryant couldn’t help but reminisce about the historic night in her late husband’s life.
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Taking to her Instagram, Vanessa uploaded a reel on her story that celebrated the 15-year anniversary of Kobe winning his first Finals MVP. She provided no caption of any kind as she did so, instead choosing to remember in silence.
Vanessa Bryant remembers her husband Kobe Bryant winning the Finals MVP 15 years ago pic.twitter.com/BQnahShqKq
— Ballerz Worldwide (@ballaznba) June 15, 2024
Kobe and the Lakers won three NBA championships in the early 2000s. However, Bryant was never awarded a Finals MVP up until 2009. And so, when he finally did win the award, the Los Angeles Lakers legend broke down, as he held his daughter, Gigi, in his arms. This is a moment that the reel in question put on full display.
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Former NBA commissioner David Stern announced Bryant as the 2009 Finals MVP. He then received the Finals MVP trophy from the hands of the late Boston Celtics legend, Bill Rusell.
After the departure of The Big Aristotle from LA, many doubted Bryant’s ability to win a championship without any help and as the team’s sole leader. With this award, however, not only did Kobe prove his leadership to all his doubters, but he proved it to himself as well. And from there, there was no stopping him.
Kobe Bryant’s back-to-back Finals MVP
A fierce competitor at heart, Kobe Bryant was well aware of the accolades missing from his shelf. He had already won his first regular season MVP award by that point (2008). However, in that same year, he had gone on to lose to the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals.
Revamping himself and the players around him, Bryant and the rest of the squad doubled down to make it to the Finals once again. And this time, Kobe put up a performance of a lifetime.
He averaged 32.4 points, 7.4 assists, and 5.6 rebounds in the 2009 NBA Finals. The Black Mamba was a menace on the other side of the court too, as he averaged 1.4 steals and 1.4 blocks on defense.
Bryant continued his rampage and made it to the finals the following year. But this time, the five-time NBA champion got his revenge as he defeated the Boston Celtics for his fifth and final championship, along with his second Finals MVP as well.
