With numerous crazy scoring feats such as his 81-point game, Kobe Bryant was an offensive force to be reckoned with. But was there a particular team against who the Black Mamba did not have any big scoring games? 4x NBA All-Star Rasheed Wallace has claimed it to be none other than his former team, Detroit Pistons. Notably, Bryant’s Los Angeles Lakers clashed with Wallace’s Pistons in the 2004 Finals and suffered a shocking 4-1 defeat.

This, along with the 2008 loss against the Boston Celtics, was something Kobe regretted even after his retirement. He got his revenge on the Celtics with the 2010 Finals win, but he never got this opportunity against the Pistons. However, Wallace’s claim on the Black Mamba‘s performance against the Pistons during his time seems to be an overstatement. “… I was in Detroit and the times that we played the Lakers. And we all know how great of a scorer Kobe is. Kobe never had no big games like that,” he said on an episode of Sheed and Tyler.

In the 2004 Finals, Kobe averaged 22.6 points, with 2.8 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game against the Pistons. The stat-line may demand more considering it’s Kobe, but his 33 points in Game 2 cannot be ignored. Apart from this, the 5x NBA champ also scored 40 points in one instance (2006) and 35+ points in two other instances (2006 and 2008) while Wallace was on the roster.

Now the comparison to Bryant having 50+ points on multiple instances cannot dwarf his 40 points against the Pistons, as stated by Rasheed. However, he meant no disrespect to Kobe, as he already acknowledged him as a proficient scorer. But apart from this, he also appreciated Bryant as “a hellacious, underrated defender.”

Analyzing Wallace’s claim on Kobe Bryant’s defense

Bryant made it to the NBA All-Defense team 12 times during his career. This is the second-highest number that any NBA star made it to the All-Defensive team. The 5x NBA champ shares the spot with Kevin Garnett at 12 selections, after Tim Duncan’s 15 selections in total.

However, Bryant tops the list along with KG, Gary Paton, and Michael Jordan in All-Defensive First Team selections (9). The 18x All-Star credited his defensive inspiration to Clyde Drexler. Now, Drexler was a tremendous defender, but not among the elite ones. He did not even make a single selection in the All-Defensive team during his career.

But in his autobiography, Kobe Bryant still praised the 10x All-Star. “I always admired Clyde. I always looked at how he defended. He understood how to use his hands and block the vision of the player with one hand while using the other as a threat to steal the ball or shield it,” Kobe stated. He further highlighted how Drexler had great balance and used it to his advantage. “The way I defend, in fact, can be attributed to Clyde. (And MJ, of course),” he added.

Stay tuned for more such updates. And to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the infamous Shaquille O’Neal-Kobe Bryant feud, Caitlin Clark’s Olympic snub, and more, watch this video.