This might be an important step in his growth, just like standing firm against his parents over Vanessa.
In the end, he married Vanessa, and they moved to Portland, bought a villa in Lake Oswego Park, and started their life together there.
Now on the court, Kobe also needed to take such a step, making the atmosphere of the game tense and charged.
The Trail Blazers' lineup this season is quite impressive, with starting power forward Little O'Neal, shooting guard Kobe, center Ben Wallace, small forward Reuben Patterson, and starting point guard Derek Anderson.
In 2000, with Gan Guoyang's retirement, a batch of veteran players from the Trail Blazers either retired or left, leaving half of the roster vacant.
In this context, Larry Bird leveraged his skills, made a series of trades, and draft picks, refilling the team's roster while maintaining strong competitiveness.
