NEW YORK – You don’t need a watch to know Father Time has caught up to Kobe Bryant.
With that in mind, I asked Bryant what he wants his legacy to be when he retires.
“As a talented overachiever,” Bryant replied with a laugh. “I really worked my butt off every single day to make sure I left no stone unturned and try to push it as much as I possibly could.”
“My message has been consistent all the time,” Bryant said. “If I change my mind, I’ll come back and play. If I don’t, I won’t. I’ve been pretty consistent with that.”
In the midst of his farewell tour, Bryant returned Sunday to Madison Square Garden – a place that has shaped his legacy in many notable ways over his storied career.
It’s where Bryant scored his first career points as a teenager in 1996. Two years later, Bryant became the youngest player to appear in an All-Star Game. In 2007, Bryant became the youngest player to reach the 20,000-point plateau at the time before LeBron James broke that record in 2013. In 2009, Bryant set the arena’s scoring record with a 61-point performance before Carmelo Anthony broke that record with 62 in 2014.
Given his success at MSG, it’s fitting that many of Bryant’s memorable moments have come at the arena where he grew up watching videotapes of Walt Frazier, Earl Monroe, Willis Reed and Dave DeBusschere, as he mentioned Sunday.
In his final hurrah in New York, Bryant showed flashes of what has made him a 17-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA First Team selection, 9-time NBA All-Defensive First Team selection, 5-time champion, 4-time All-Star Game MVP, 2-time Finals MVP and scoring champion and a league MVP.
At various points in the game, Bryant swished a baseline fadeaway jumper off of a curl, stepped into a 3-pointer from the wing early in the shot clock in rhythm, found Tarik Black for an uncontested dunk with a spinning one-handed, no-look assist as a double team swarmed and beat Lance Thomas off the dribble, stopped and hit an off-balance fadeaway jumper.
Every time Bryant touched the ball the crowd stood up, anxiously awaited each dribble and held its collective breathe. Fans serenaded Bryant with “M-V-P” chants at the foul line.
Bryant also playfully trash talked with Spike Lee during the game. Video footage surfaced of Bryant telling Lee, “That ain’t no f—— triangle, that’s a square.”
Whatever shaped offense the Lakers ran wasn’t much better, as Bryant scored 18 points on 6-for-19 shooting from the field.
At the end of the game, Bryant hugged former teammates Derek Fisher and Sasha Vujacic while Phil Jackson stopped by to visit him in the locker room.
In September, Jackson made a bold prediction when discussing Bryant’s future. “I don’t think it’s his last year,” Jackson said. “It sounds like it may be his last year as a Laker.”
However, before facing the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on Friday, Bryant put an end to that speculation.
“I’m a Laker for life,” Bryant proclaimed. “I’m not playing anywhere else no matter what. It’s just not going to happen. I bleed purple and gold and that’s just how it’s going to be.”
After Bryant reiterated he only wants to be a Laker on Friday and made it unquestionably clear he’s leaning towards retirement on Sunday, Bryant has received more cheers than boos on the road — something he’s not used to.
“It’s an uncomfortable hug,” Bryant said with a laugh on Friday. “I’m really appreciative of it. I really am. It feels great to have that despite being a villain for some many years.”
If Bryant had his way, he’d still be the villain.
“I’d rather enjoy the hostility,” Bryant added. “That’s why I love going on the road and that’s what I’ve always enjoyed throughout my career is that road hostility. It’s showing respect for what I’ve done but showing it that way.”
Aside from Bryant’s remaining games, the development of D’Angelo Russell, Julius Randle and Jordan Clarkson as the future core, and whether the Lakers can retain their top-3 protected draft pick, will be the major storylines.
This is a stark contrast to three seasons ago when Bryant was paired with Pau Gasol, Steve Nash and Dwight Howard as the favorites to win the championship. However, Howard was coming off back surgery and never clicked with Bryant, Nash broke down physically and Mike D’Antoni couldn’t find the winning formula before losing in the first round. In the following two seasons, the Lakers have gone a combined 48-116 (.293).
Bryant reminisced about his first All-Star Game at MSG surrounded by the likes of John Stockton, Clyde Drexler, Gary Payton and Charles Barkley on Sunday. Now, at 37, the shoe is on the other foot for Bryant to become a mentor.
“Whenever we have questions or whenever he sees something he can help us with he’s not shy to give us advice,” Randle told SheridanHoops.
Dealt with the challenge of learning how to run a team at the league’s premier position while trying to avoid coach Byron Scott’s doghouse, Russell has received the most guidance from Bryant to date.
In Russell, Bryant relates to the rookie’s struggle to find consistent playing time as he did as a teenager.
“I think it’s the frustration of seeing some of his peers and the liberties that they have and the way that they play,” Bryant said Friday. “It’s a little frustrating, but at the same time I think he’s in a great situation because Byron’s making him earn everything and even though D’Angelo may not see it now, years from now he’ll certainly appreciate it.”
That struggle was evident when Scott benched Russell down 93-90 with 1:25 left in the game, which is normally a great learning situation for a rookie in a close game down the stretch. Conversely, as Scott mentioned on Friday, a benching can teach a similarly valuable lesson in the coach’s eyes.
“I think when you make a mistake over and over again sometimes that wood has a good way of talking to your butt a little bit too,” Scott said. “You get a couple of splinters here and there, sometimes that has a great way of communicating how important it is to play on that other end of the floor.”
Those splinters helped turn Bryant into one of the game’s greatest players after he earned his keep. Scott plans to use the same mentality with Russell, Randle and Clarkson.
“I see a bright future,” Randle told SheridanHoops. “As long as we keep working, keep our head down, stay humble, know it’s a process and that it takes time, we’ll be alright. We’ll be pretty good in the future.”
To make that bright future a reality, the Lakers will need Russell, Randle or Clarkson to become the next “talented overachiever” like Bryant.
Michael Scotto is an NBA columnist for SheridanHoops.com. Follow him on Twitter: @MikeAScotto.