Fans of the [Los Angeles Lakers](https://lakersdaily.com/) know that franchise legend Kobe Bryant played at an elite level for the lion’s share of his 20-year career in the NBA. Bryant stacked up individual and team accomplishments like pancakes during his prolonged stint in a Lakers uniform, as he earned five championships, one league MVP, two Finals MVPs and 15 All-NBA selections, among other accolades.
However, Bryant was little more than a husk of his former self in his final few seasons, including the swan song of his NBA career, the 2015-16 season.
In his last year, he wasn’t nearly as effective of a scorer, playmaker, rebounder or defender as he was earlier on in his pro tenure, and he was also plagued by highly inefficient shooting. Bryant shot just 35.8 percent from the field and 28.5 percent from 3-point range in his final season for a Lakers team that won just 17 games.
Former NBA guard Lou Williams, who played alongside Bryant during the Hall of Famer’s last season, said that Bryant’s “mentality shifted” once his “body started breaking down” in the 2015-16 campaign.
> “First, I wanna say this,” Williams began. “Two-four started that season as Kobe Bryant. Training camp, he was pushing everybody. He was getting his body ready. He was getting his mind ready. He was making sure we all was on the same page.
>
> “And then as I remember it, I feel like nine, 10 games in, his body started breaking down, and he came to the realization that this was the end, and his mentality shifted. He became a lot lighthearted. He became more easygoing.
>
> “And I knew at that point he had kinda took his foot off the gas, like he knew his body wasn’t gonna hold up to the standard that he had set for himself.”
Bryant averaged 17.6 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 0.9 steals per game in his final season. All of those numbers were well below his career averages.
While Bryant didn’t play at the level he was accustomed to playing at in his last season before he walked away from his NBA career, he was still named an All-Star for the 18th time that season.
Plus, he capped off his pro career with one of the more iconic farewell games in NBA history. Against the [Utah Jazz](https://ahnfiredigital.com/category/nba/utah-jazz/) in April of 2016, Bryant took 50 shots from the field and went off for 60 points. He carried the Lakers to a five-point victory in that contest to boot.
Tragically, Bryant didn’t get to enjoy retirement for all that long, as he lost his life far too soon in a helicopter crash back in the year 2020.
Regardless of how Bryant fared on the court in the twilight of his NBA career, he is still universally recognized as not only one of the all-time great Lakers but one of the greatest players in the history of the league.