SUMMARY
- In 2010, the Lakers won the NBA Finals after Metta Sandiford-Artest shot a game-winning three-pointer on a pass from Kobe Bryant.
- Bryant was never known to be a passer as he didn't trust his teammates too much.
The Los Angeles Lakers were peaking while Kobe Bryant led the flock between 1996 and 2016. Over 20 years, the late NBA legend delivered some iconic moments while contributing to five of the Lakers’ 17 banners overall. It was back in 2010 when the Purple and Gold last won a championship, and it was against an age-old rival, the Boston Celtics.
Obviously, the 2010 NBA Finals series stretched to seven games and it was in the series closer that Metta Sandiford-Artest hit a game-winning three-pointer. What surprised Artest the most was that his game-winner was made after a pass from Bryant. As you can see, Artest couldn’t contain his excitement.
“Kobe passed me the ball. He never passes me the ball!”
14 years ago today, Ron Artest & one of the greatest NBA Championship press conferences ever 😂 pic.twitter.com/WBhr8XX9Y9
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) June 17, 2024
He said, “He [Bryant] trusted us and he made us feel so good. And he passed me the ball. He never passes me the ball… Kobe passed me the ball and I shot a three. I feel he didn’t want me to shoot the three, I heard him… cause he’s the Zen master, he can speak to you… and he don’t even need a microphone.” Artest also suggested that he didn’t care whether Bryant wanted him to take the game-winning shot or not, but he simply shot it anyway.
Metta Sandiford-Artest didn’t understand the magnitude of his 2010 NBA Final game-winner
Metta Sandiford-Artest was known as a tough competitor during his time and the fact that he paired up with Kobe Bryant made the LA Lakers seem dangerous. However, making the 2010 NBA Finals was a dream come true for the former Lakers player. He said he didn’t fully realize that the 2010 NBA Championship meant more to the Lakers organization than he initially thought.
He said, “I didn’t even realize how big that series was. I was just more thinking about my first title…I didn’t even realize how big the rivalry was, honestly. Not until we won. And then everybody kept being like, ‘Oh wow! The big shot! The big shot!’ That’s why I think that I’m kind of etched in history here [in Los Angeles]. Because it was against the Celtics.”
At that point, the Celtics had won their 17th title and the Lakers had only 15 championships. The 2010 NBA Finals win marked the 16th time the Lakers hung a championship banner at the Staples Center, now known as the Crypto.com Arena.
Kobe Bryant had a reputation for not passing the ball to his teammates
The way Artest reacted to Kobe Bryant passing the ball to him for an open game-winner was hilarious, especially since the 5x NBA Champion had a nasty reputation of being a ball hog. Bryant didn’t like passing the ball because he felt that his teammates didn’t put in enough work to be reliable on the floor.
Phil Handy once revealed what Bryant said on All the Smoke. Bryant reportedly said, “You really wanna know? Some of my teammates don’t understand the work. I see dudes walking into practice 10 minutes before practice and they leave right after. Why the f**k am I going to pass them the basketball? I don’t respect their work ethic.”
According to Handy, Bryant further stated, “I’m in here busting my ass every day trying to perfect my craft and these dudes don’t want to work on their game. I don’t trust them. So I’m not going to pass them the basketball. I’m gonna ride them hard every day.” But that was a part of what made Bryant a great leader. He knew how to lead a team and he knew what to do to push his teammates to be better.