“It Was Genuine & Not Mean”: When Kobe Bryant Was Praised by an In-Match Referee

When Kobe Bryant was in his final game in 2016, he got the respect he deserved for the legacy he had left behind. Even the referees in the game wanted to bid adieu to him.

Monty McCutchen was among the referees in the game. Officiating in the NBA since 1993, he was one of the most respected referees in the league. In a short clip that had come out on social media after Bryant’s final game, McCutchen was talking to the Lakers man during the game. He said how he would always remember Bryant for being genuine.

With the kind of career Kobe had, he was always well-respected on the court. Even four years after his last game, Bryant’s legacy remains, although he is no longer a part of the world.

Bryant lost his life along with his daughter and six others in a helicopter crash in January. People reflected on Bryant’s 20-year NBA career and his 41-year life. The legendary Michael Jordan grieved on having lost his “little brother”.

Kobe Bryant will have his name included in the Basketball Hall of Fame

Bryant, who led the Lakers to five NBA titles, will have his rightful place in the Basketball Hall of Fame later this year. Having played his entire career for the Lakers, Bryant will always have a special place in the history of the game as a perennial Laker.

“No amount of words can fully describe what Kobe Bryant meant to the Los Angeles Lakers. Kobe was not only a proven winner and a champion, he gave everything he had to the game of basketball,” Los Angeles Lakers owner Jeanie Buss said after the announcement of Bryant’s inclusion in the Hall of Fame.