Gordon Hayward wants to set the record straight about Kobe Bryant’s legendary swan song.
Bryant’s tragic death Sunday prompted countless folks around the sports world to share their favorite memories and stories of the Los Angeles Lakers icon. For NBC Sports’ Mike Tirico, an apparent display of respect in Bryant’s final NBA game came to mind.
It wasn’t entirely Bryant’s 60 points against Utah that captivated Tirico. As he explained to The Ringer on Monday, Tirico was thoroughly impressed by a perceived gesture by then-Jazz forward Gordon Hayward, who appeared to blatantly step into the lane before Bryant shot his final free throw of the game, which eclipsed the 60-point threshold. Why? Had Bryant missed, he likely would have received another opportunity to reach the mark given Hayward’s infraction.
You can listen to Tirico run down his interpretation of the sequence in the video below:
The reverence for greatness in the NBA is at a different level than in any other sport. @miketirico explains to @ryenarussillo how a moment between Gordon Hayward and Kobe Bryant was the truest embodiment of that.
Full pod: https://t.co/TjAPJOEZTt pic.twitter.com/02sn3AFKNK
— The Ringer (@ringer) January 28, 2020
While Hayward began to receive an outpouring of praise upon Tirico’s clip going viral, he quickly cleared things up. As the Boston Celtics star explained in a Twitter thread, Bryant earned every single point he notched that night at Staples Center in April 2016.
The past day has been incredibly heartbreaking for me. Kobe is someone that I looked up to and admired and developed a personal relationship with. I have struggled so much with trying to understand the devastating news and like many others I’m still trying to process it.
— Gordon Hayward (@gordonhayward) January 28, 2020
That was a night that I will truly never forget as I can remember almost every moment of it and my goal that night was to compete as hard as I possibly could against Kobe because that is what he was all about and I wanted to give him my very best.
— Gordon Hayward (@gordonhayward) January 28, 2020
Rest In Peace Kobe. I’m so honored to have shared our time on and off the court together!
— Gordon Hayward (@gordonhayward) January 28, 2020
Tirico was appreciative of Hayward speaking up.
Please check out this thread from @gordonhayward, so glad he clarified what I had always assumed was intentional that night. Our paths have never crossed since that night. Thank you @espn for reairing Kobe’s final game. Still all so hard to believe. https://t.co/iWRzjIaTPl
— MikeTirico (@miketirico) January 28, 2020
Hayward’s probably right. Bryant was as fierce of a competitor as they come, and offering any handouts on his final night in The Association would have been doing a disservice to one of the best the game has ever seen.
