Kobe Bryant’s departure from the court in 2016 marked the lives of basketball fans around the world. But for one Brazilian in particular, the Lakers’ final victory over the Utah Jazz 101-96 tasted different. Now 29 years old and defending the Washington Wizards, Raulzinho takes a closer look at Starr’s final act on the court.
“Coincidence or luck, I don’t know, it depends on what everyone believes. That’s what happened in that game. Kobe’s last game, the way the game went, even though I was on the opposing team, and I Didn’t want to lose the game, whether it was perfect for basketball or not. It was a movie scene,” recalls Guard in an interview with NBA House.
“He started the game badly, gave one, two ‘airballs,’ and everyone was in it like ‘this is going to be embarrassing’, ‘the guy won’t play well’. Suddenly, I don’t know what happened, he started Did put it all in one ball. Fans… It looked like the championship was over, fans went crazy over every ball, and he ended up practically all alone, turning the game around gone,” he said.
Kobe left Staples Center to applause after scoring 60, the highest score in the NBA that season, in the eyes of other Los Angeles idols such as Magic Johnson, who spoke after the game. .
Shirt 24 was immortalized in the gym after farewell. In January 2020, eight others, including Kobe and his daughter Gianna, died in a helicopter crash in the United States.
