Shaquille O’Neal Challenges Kobe Bryant to Score 50 in Final Game (VIDEO)

After scoring 20 points Tuesday night, helping lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 107-100 win against the Memphis Grizzlies, Kobe Bryant sat down for a chat with the “Inside the NBA” crew.

Shaquille O’Neal told Kobe that he’s hoping for a 50-point game in his final NBA appearance on April 13.

The Black Mamba, whose season-high is 38 points, wisely shot down the challenge.

Bryant, 37, had sat out the previous two games due to a sore right shoulder.

Per the LA Times:

(Adam) Silver, the NBA commissioner, was there in person, in town to announce the return of the All-Star game to Staples Center in 2018. […] He was told the Lakers had never missed playoffs three consecutive years until now. He was then asked how important it was for them to be a factor in the NBA world.

 

Silver didn’t seem worried, at least outwardly. […] “No team has been as successful as the Lakers in modern sports history in any league,” he said. “I have complete confidence in Jeanie Buss as the governor of the team and how she manages it. There is the ebb and flow of every team, and I know they will return to being a competitive team.”

 

After all, Silver’s predecessor, David Stern, once said his ideal NBA Finals would pit “the Lakers vs. the Lakers.”

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