Kobe Bryant finally surpassed Michael Jordan on the all-time scoring list Sunday and takes the third spot trailing behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone, sitting on the first and second place respectively.
The 36 year old veteran, who has just recently recovered from various injuries most notably his knee injury, overtook the Chicago Bulls legend in a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. The career defining moment came in the form of a made second-quarter free throw. Bryant currently has 32, 292 points all earned in his 19 year career. Karl Malone is currently in second place with 36,928 points and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar sits tightly in the first place with 38,387.
Black Mamba, as he is affectionately known in the league started his NBA career at a fresh age of 18 when he was drafted in 1996. In a career spanning 19 seasons, he won five NBA championship title, all played in his current and only team the Los Angeles Lakers. Bryant has been constantly benchmarked against Jordan who has achieved his record in only a span of 15 seasons and garnering 6 championship rings. Phil Jackson who coached both of these great players wrote in his book "Eleven Rings" that Kobe was "hell-bent on surpassing Jordan as the greatest player in the game."
When asked about it, Kobe replied "It's really not a big deal to say I passed him for something like that. It's a great accomplishment, but the true beauty is in the journey."
To immortalize the moment, Nike, which sponsors Bryant, decided to release a shoe in his honor. The shoe will be named "Mamba Moment" it will be available online for $245.
Kobe's all-time career record, currently stands at 25.5 points per game, 5.3 rebounds per game, 4.8 assists per game and has a shooting percentage of 45.4%.
