The NBA All-Star Game is in the books, and it was a ruckus good time saying farewell to Kobe Bryant.
While the NBA All-Star Game is pretty much a glorified exhibition game that even die hards badly care about, this year’s same felt different.
That was because this was the final All-Star Game that Kobe Bryant will ever play in, and it helped put a shine on the night that gave everything a special feel. It still didn’t count in the record books, but this year’s All-Star Game counted to the fans of the league.
The night started with the obvious — a fitting farewell to Kobe Bryant.
From there on, it was the typical dunk fest that you’d expect the All-Star Game to be. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t fantastic, it was just predictable.
Even Steph Curry got up and hammered one home:
Not everything went according to plan though. Draymond Green not only lost to Kevin Hart in the three-point contest on Saturday but he bricked a trick dunk on Sunday.
Russell Westbrook went ahead and rectified that.
We also saw the last matchup of Kobe and LeBron — and it was pretty amazing to see.
At the end of the day, the game doesn’t mean anything. It’s a glorified exhibition game that is all about the pomp and circumstance. But this game felt special thanks to it being the last time we will ever see Kobe Bryant in an All-Star Game.
That element gave this year’s game a different dynamic, as everyone who idolized Kobe growing up went out and showed him just what he inspired in this next generation of basketball stars.