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Boston, MassachusettesJune 17, 2008 Lakers Kobe Bryant walks off the court as the Celtics celebrate the championship in Game 6 of the NBA Finals at the TD Banknorth Center Tuesday. (Photo by Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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Boston, MassachusettesJune 17, 2008 Lakers Kobe Bryant walks off the court as the Celtics celebrate the championship in Game 6 of the NBA Finals at the TD Banknorth Center Tuesday. (Photo by Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
If the NBA Community talks about the greatest player of all time in the league, the discussion remains incomplete without Kobe Bryant. Kobe Bryant was one of the best shooting guards to ever play in the NBA, and the best of all time. The most common other players in that discussion are Michael Jordan and LeBron James. However, following Jordan’s retirement, Kobe Bryant was indisputably the best player on the court in the NBA in the 2000s.
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MINNEAPOLIS, MN – DECEMBER 14: Kobe Bryant #24 of the Los Angeles Lakers waves to the crowd after passing Michael Jordan on the all-time scoring list with a free throw in the second quarter of the game on December 14, 2014 at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
While Michael Jordan and LeBron James have never played against each other, Kobe Bryant has played them both. So what was it that made him a common mention in that discussion?
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Kobe has a lot of individual records in the league. However, the one that stands out the most is that he has scored 40+ points against every NBA team.
Kobe Bryant was a class apart
For most NBA players, scoring 40 points against a team is a significant accomplishment. Then there’s Kobe Bryant who is in a separate league of his own.
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During his time in the NBA, teams recognized Bryant as a dangerous scorer who set many records. When Kobe was still in the league, he put up scores with ease. For example, in just three quarters, he outscored the whole Mavericks team.
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Therefore, the record that he has scored 40 points or more against every NBA team he has ever faced, puts him above others. Since he is the only Hall of Famer in history to accomplish this feat, he was an exclusive among exclusives.
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Michael Jordan had scored 40 points or more against every team in the league by 1991. However, the Vancouver/Memphis Grizzlies, created in 1995, the New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans, formed in 2002, the Toronto Raptors, formed in 1995, and his own franchise, the Chicago Bulls, are not included in this accomplishment. So Kobe’s achievement in a way stands above the most individually successful player in the league, i.e. Michael Jordan.
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