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BOSTON, MA, JUNE 13, 2010 Kobe Bryant finds it hard to get to the basket against the defense of Celtics forward Kevin Garnett late in game five of the NBA Finals at the TD Garden. (Photo by Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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BOSTON, MA, JUNE 13, 2010 Kobe Bryant finds it hard to get to the basket against the defense of Celtics forward Kevin Garnett late in game five of the NBA Finals at the TD Garden. (Photo by Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Kobe Bryant might have won five championships, but according to him, the Finals loss against the Celtics was the toughest one of his career. The Celtics beat the Lakers in 6 games and the manner they won the deciding game 6 was shocking. The Celtics beat the Lakers by a record 39 points.
This was one of the most one-sided finals games of all time. For Kobe, this was something that didn’t sit right with him, especially the manner in which they lost. And that too to their illustrious rivals, The Boston Celtics.
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Paul Pierce (R) of the Boston Celtics moves the ball away from Kobe Bryant (L) of the Los Angeles Lakers during the Game 3 of the 2008 NBA Finals in Los Angeles, California, June 10, 2008. Bryant scored 36 points and the Los Angeles Lakers held off Boston to defeat the Celtics 87-81, pulling within two games to one in the National Basketball Association Finals. AFP PHOTO / GABRIEL BOUYS (Photo credit should read GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP via Getty Images)
Kobe was more motivated than ever to avenge this loss. He tried to motivate himself by cutting out a photo of Paul Pierce celebrating and keeping it in his pocket at all times.
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He put up his Olympic gold medal in Pau Gasol’s locker to try to get him motivated. In the end, Kobe finally got his revenge by winning against the Celtics in the 2010 finals.
Kobe Bryant reveals how the Lakers lost an NBA championship
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Kobe tells how being relaxed and happy cost the Lakers in the finals. He says, “For us to have a team that’s confrontational and on edge brings out the competitive spirit of everybody else, you know what I’m saying? If everybody is just relaxed and happy-go-lucky and this, that and the other, then that’s the personality we’ll have as a team.”
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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)
He says the Boston Celtics were a confrontational team and loved to challenge teams. Kobe adds, “That’s what happened to us in 2008. Everything was really easy for us, real smooth. …Everybody liked each other. And then we got to the Finals, and we ran into a bus. The Celtics – those m*therf*ckers just beat the sh*t out of us.”
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Kobe was having one of his best seasons ever in 2008. In fact, The Lakers finally had a good enough team to compete for a championship. The Lakers finished first in an incredibly competitive western conference. Kobe himself was having a great year and he was the league MVP that year. He was also having a great playoff run, averaging over 30 PPG. Unfortunately, he could not convert this into a championship as they ran into a resurgent Celtics team.
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