The long goodbye: Kobe Bryant’s farewell road tour concludes in Oklahoma City before career finale
The 785th road game of Kobe Bryant’s 20-year Hall of Fame career on Monday was his final road game
The 785th road game, play-offs included, of Kobe Bryant’s 20-year Hall of Fame career on Monday against the Oklahoma City Thunder was his final road game.
He found out he had a lot of love out there. Everybody showed their love because he came to play every single night
In his first road game on November 5, 1996 against the New York Knicks, Bryant scored one point, a free throw with 11:20 left in the second quarter. Los Angeles Lakers coach Bryon Scott was also a reserve on that Lakers team.
In the extinguishing embers of a career that burned bright, he had one more show for the road. Thunder fans, Bryant fans and those who appreciated what he has done craved one more scoring outburst and hoped every shot went in.
Bryant wanted to make it worth their dollar, and they got what they paid for: Bryant finished with 13 points – all in the first quarter – on 4-for-12 shooting, including an airball on his first attempt.
Those days are no more – Bryant, however, has five 30-point games this season, including three on the road. Thunder forward Kevin Durant (34 points) and Russell Westbrook (13 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds and a first-half triple-double) did what Bryant used to do.
Durant went one-on-one with Bryant during a stretch in the third quarter of a game that wasn’t much of a game. The Thunder won 112-79, and following the game, Thunder players lined up for a hug and handshake.