By Joël Pütz | Sports journalist
When Kobe Bryant joined the Lakers in 1996 via the draft, Shaquille O’Neal had already spent four years on the professional courts. The Big Diesel therefore played the big brothers for the legendary guard, especially after his first big fiasco in the playoffs.
If we think of the duo Kobe Bryant – Shaquille O’Neal Today, the Lakers’ incredible three-peat from the early 2000s is the first thing that comes to mind. The divorce between the two men in 2004 was certainly extremely stormy, but they had managed to crush everything in the NBA before that despite their oversized egos. Shaq was then the main strike force, while Bean played the luxury lieutenants.
It must in fact be remembered that although they arrived at the same time in Los Angeles, in the summer of 1996, their respective situations were very different. The Big Aristotle had already experienced the NBA Finals with Orlando, while the Mamba had barely left high school without passing the NCAA. In his first two professional seasons, the man who then wore number 8 only started 7 games as a starter.
When Shaq perked up Kobe after his first playoffs
Although he did not play the leading role, the man already had great confidence in himself… but that did not prevent him from experiencing a nightmare during the 1997 playoffs, during the second round against Jazz. The Mormons then won in five games while Kobe sent no less than four air balls in a row in Game 5, including three in overtime. Years later, Shaq returned to what followed:
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Utah killed us in the playoffs. His last three shots ended in airballs. His head was down after the game and I remember putting my arm around him and saying, “You know what? Don’t worry, young man. One day people are going to worry that you’ll take the last shot. » He became one of the greatest players in history after that.
Some legends are sometimes forged in immense disappointments and it is clear that the fiasco had a huge impact on Vino. Two years later, the guy averaged nearly 20 points, 7 rebounds and two steals during the 1998-99 post-season, quite a progression. Kobe also made no secret during an old interview that the series against Jazz had significantly changed his vision of things:
All the shots were good, they were well aimed, but they didn’t reach the basket. That’s when I told myself that I was going to start changing my training program and do a lot of strength training throughout the year, to get stronger as time went on. year goes by. This is how I was able to reflect on this process and use it as an opportunity to grow as a player.
Defeat is often the best lesson, especially when you screwed up on an individual level. Not dejected but rather overmotivated after failing against the Jazz as a rookie, Kobe Bryant ended up becoming one of the best players in post-season history.
2024-05-24 20:30:00
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