Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant did it all in a dramatic comeback win over the Toronto Raptors on Friday night.

Kobe Bryant put the Lakers on his back and led them to a 118-116 OT win against the Toronto Raptors.  Bryant led all scorers with 41 points.  Destroying the Raptors isn’t exactly foreign to Kobe.  In 2006, Bryant scored 81 points in a single game against the Toronto.

Kobe hit multiple 3-pointers at the end of regulation.  Some of the shots were extremely difficult, off-balance threes.  Bryant then drove down the lane as the Red Sea parted to slam home the winning bucket.  He showcased his signature snarl face following the dunk.  I’m not a huge fan of the snarl face, but this performance was definitely worthy of a snarl.

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It makes me laugh when people regularly say that scorers “don’t make the players around them better.”  Kobe’s scoring at the end of the game on Friday night might not have made Kobe’s teammates better, but it sure made the Lakers better.

Yeah, there is a downside to scorers like Kobe not getting teammates involved while they do most of the scoring, but it’s not all bad, all of the time.  It bothers me when people say that it is.  For the record, Kobe had 12 assists on Friday night as well.

There is an NBA doubleheader on 104.5 The Team this Sunday.  The Boston Celtics face the Oklahoma City Thunder at 1pm ET.  Then, Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers host the Chicago Bulls at 3:30pm.  Your home for the NBA is 104.5 The Team, ESPN Radio.

Brian Noe is the Brand Manager at 104.5 The Team, ESPN Radio in Albany, NY.  Brian also hosts “The Noe Show” weekdays from 1-3 pm ET on WTMM.

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