On this date, December 18 in 2017, the Los Angeles Lakers honored Kobe Bryant with a jersey retirement ceremony.
The franchise raised to the rafters at Staples Center both of Bryant's jerseys - 8 and 24. Bryant donned either jersey for 10 seasons each.
The ceremony was conducted at halftime during a game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Golden State Warriors, a contest that went to overtime and witnessed the defending champs come out victorious.
Bryant became the tenth Lakers player to have his jersey raised to the rafters, joining the likes of Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy, Elgin Baylor, Shaquille O'Neal, Gail Goodrich, and Jamaal Wilkes.
He leads the franchise in points (33,643 - 3rd overall) and steals (1944) while ranking second in assists (6306) behind Magic Johnson (10,141).
After representing the franchise for 20 seasons, Bryant retired as a 5-time NBA Champion, 2-time Finals MVP (2009, 10), 2007-08 league MVP, 18-time All-Star, 4-time All-Star Game MVP, 15-time All-NBA selection and 12 NBA All-Defensive selections.
That's not all. He arguably went out with the greatest career finale game ever, dropping 60 points in a win over the Utah Jazz.
