Kobe made the most important shot since entering the NBA.
A seemingly simple catch-and-shoot mid-range jumper still led to a crucial victory.
The Trail Blazers avoided the embarrassment of being swept by the Jazz this season, solidifying their second-place position in the Western Conference.
Back in the locker room, Kobe couldn’t contain his excitement, loudly cheering and muttering to himself.
"I did it! I made it! This is an important step on my path forward! This is the beginning of my domination of the league!"
This kid’s no longer pretending—he’s got his heart set on ruling the league.
At 18, his emotions are still that of a child, one moment calm, the next fiery, one moment showing off, another letting true feelings show.
Bird reminded Kobe, "Think about what you’ll say in the interview later, don’t say anything crazy. I’ll buy you ice cream tonight, kid."
In Bird’s eyes, Kobe was just a kid, 18 years old. Back then, Bird had just entered college and was worried about college life, eventually choosing to drop out.
Kobe had made many mistakes in his games so far, some quite ridiculous, and he wasn’t very popular in the team either.
But in some games, he’s shown unique brilliance and didn’t get overshadowed despite being next to Ah Gan.
Apart from the final game-winning shot, Gan Guoyang’s scoring spree before stepping onto the court was equally exciting; without someone stepping up at that time, the Trail Blazers would have been done for.
In this game, Gan Guoyang delivered shockingly superb numbers, but the post-game protagonist was undoubtedly Kobe.
People were already accustomed to Ah Gan’s outstanding performances. If there was a day he didn’t score in double digits or kept missing shots, that would become news.
So, Bird took Kobe to the post-game press conference to field questions from the reporters.
In front of the reporters, Kobe was very composed; he had that star quality, born for big moments.
In life, there are also people like this—privately, they don’t quite fit in with those around them, making people feel they’re a bit pretentious and not very sociable.
But when it comes to big events, needing to show themselves, they truly step up, making people feel no one else could do it.
Until now, regardless of how he played or whether the team won or lost, Kobe was always relaxed in the presence of media, never nervous.
This doesn’t mean his media performances are flawless; quite the contrary, he never conceals his thoughts, never feels awkward, or says something insincere just because there’s a camera.
When faced with tough questions, he’ll pull faces and roll his eyes, but when it’s a topic he’s interested in, he’ll speak non-stop as if chatting with a passerby.
As for the fact that anything he says could be seen and heard by the public and interpreted in various ways, Kobe simply doesn’t care; he doesn’t dwell on such issues.
At the press conference, a reporter asked Kobe, "Before Ah Gan passed, you were standing there with your hands ready—were you sure Ah Gan would pass to you?"
Kobe shrugged and said, "I couldn’t be sure. Sometimes Ah Gan faces double or triple teams and takes the shot himself, which he makes. But he might pass to me, so I had to be ready."
"What if he hadn’t passed it?"
"If he hadn’t passed, and he shot it, my job would be to get in position, box out, and grab the rebound. Many things you have to learn to fight for yourself."
Kobe’s tone was quite seasoned, and Bird laughed beside him.
The press conference ended, and on the way back to the bus, Bird said, "Actually, you should’ve said, ’I firmly believed Ah Gan would pass to me’—that’s the most undisputed statement."
Kobe replied, "Why would I lie? My real thought is that I was uncertain. Ah Gan told me—double-teaming is a good chance, triple-teaming isn’t impossible to shoot, surrounded by four players and he can still make it."
Bird laughed and said, "He was joking with you, saying you liked to play solo in high school without passing to teammates."
"That’s because my teammates were too lousy!"
"Aren’t you guys lousy now? Sometimes I want to play myself."
Bird sighed. Tonight’s game was a win, but Ah Gan can’t score 60 points every game.
The Trail Blazers stand at the second spot in the Western Conference purely due to Ah Gan’s personal ability.
Others not only can’t keep pace with Ah Gan, they can’t even catch sight of his shadow.
And as the season progresses, the team’s fatigue is growing, their form becoming inconsistent.
Apart from Ah Gan, PJ Brown, Porter and a few others, the rest are inexperienced at making a playoff push and going all out to peak.
The team has always hoped Porter would regain his form during the season, but post-All-Star game, Porter’s form is just mediocre at best, barely fulfilling his duty.
This former stalwart of the Trail Blazers has truly struggled to muster up the spirit to follow the old captain and charge towards the sunrise.
Meanwhile, PJ Brown, in his contract year, has been negotiating with the Trail Blazers management post-All-Star game hoping for an early renewal.
But since acquiring Little O’Neal, negotiations with PJ Brown have remained ambiguous; they are observing.
Recently, Ben Wallace has also made a name for himself, and AC Green can equally contribute at the four spot.
More importantly, management has been in touch with Europe’s Sabonis, hoping he’ll return to the NBA next season.
The Trail Blazers will look for ways to use special exception clauses to re-sign Sabonis; the Lithuanian is Ah Gan’s best partner.
A series of reasons have made PJ Brown’s renewal look distant, and the Trail Blazers may very well let PJ go this summer.