Top 5 Playoff Performances of Kobe Bryant

#2 28 Points in Game 4, 2000 NBA Finals

Kobe scores 8 points in overtime in Game 4 of the 2000 NBA Finals

Kobe Bryant is widely recognized as one of the greatest scorers this game has ever seen. Bryant would have seasons where 28 points would be considered as a subpar night and that is ironically what makes this performance one of the best we have seen in his illustrious career.

The Los Angeles Lakers had not won a championship in almost a decade and were certainly seen as the favorites against the Indiana Pacers in the 2000 NBA Finals. As the Lakers walked into Metropolis for Game 4, nobody was quite sure what to expect from Kobe. Things were slightly perilous as Bryant had suffered an ankle injury in Game 2 and was forced to miss game 3 which the Pacers won.

The Pacers went toe to toe with Lakers in every single minute of game 4. With the score tied at 104 after regulation and with 2:33 left in overtime, Shaquille O'Neal, who had scored 36 points, fouled out. Everybody thought that the Pacers might run away with the game.

But even after playing through pain through most of the regulation, the then 21-year-old Kobe stepped up and scored 8 points including a key putback bucket to lead the Lakers to a 112-118 win. This was an iconic performance which marked the emergence of Kobe Bryant at the biggest stage of the game.

The Lakers with this win took a commanding lead of 3-1 in the series. 5 days later Kobe Bryant would go onto win his first ring as the Lakers were crowned 2001 NBA Champions.