Los Angeles Lakers star and NBA legend Kobe Bryant announced his retirement from professional basketball on Nov. 29, 2015. The five-time NBA championship winner announced he will retire after this year’s 2015-2016 season.
Bryant said, “This season is all I have left to give.”
The announcement comes as no real shock, as during the last few years Bryant has been plagued by injuries that have left him out of a combined 123 games in the past two seasons. That, combined with the recent struggling form of the Lakers team, has led many to expect this announcement.
“He’ll go down as one of the greatest basketball players ever,” said Mason Reed, a freshman undeclared major from Nevada. “Although I’ll miss watching him play, I think it’s the right decision for him to retire this year.”
The announcement has led many to ponder his amazing 20-year career with the Lakers, the longest a player has played for one team in NBA history.
“I think he had one of the most successful careers in basketball, he knew what it took to win and he went out his whole career and did it,” said Kyle Oertel, a junior exercise and sports science major from California.
Over his two-decade career, he has won two Olympic gold medals, five championship rings, 17 All-Star selections, an 81-point game that ranks as the second-best in NBA history, and has scored more than 32,000 points, according to ESPN.
The Lakers have 64 games left in the regular season and most likely the rest of the season will turn into an adoration tour for Bryant as he plays his final games in cities across America. Similar to Derek Jeter, who played his last season for the New York Yankees back in 2014.
Though many have mixed opinions about the basketball star, few can deny the impact his has had on the game.
“Growing up it was always fun to watch Kobe play. I would imitate his shoes and say ‘Kobe,’” said Abraham Garcia, a senior psychology major from California.
“I am grateful for what he did for the game and for the Lakers.”