The late Kobe Bryant was the only one missing in Saturday’s ceremony for the induction of all members of the 2008 USA National Basketball Team – also known as the Redeem Team – into the Hall of Fame.
Kobe, along side Lebron James, Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Carlos Boozer, Jason Kidd, Michael Redd, Deron Williams, Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, and Tayshaun Prince were tasked to get America back to the top of basketball world and they delivered.
The other 11 were present in the ceremony but they also made sure that their former teammate and leader won’t be left out.
“Our goal was to win the gold medal, but also to win the respect of our country again, and also the respect of the world,” said then coach Mike Krzyzewski.
USA never looked back since then. They also won the next four editions.
Bryant, who unfortunately died on a plane crash in 2020, has been inducted into Hall of Fame in 2021.
Kobe Bryant is the glue they needed
Bryant was one of the two older players in the 2008 Redeem Team. He instantly emerged as the leader of the team that was filled with young superstars. He was the team captain.
That was not his only role according to Lebron.
“(Bryant) was the missing link that we needed in order to regain the dominance with Team USA,” the four-time MVP said in the ceremony.
“He made us lock in. We knew once he joined and he was gonna be committed that we couldn’t be doing nothing half ass.”
Bryant’s 2008 stint is best remembered for his finals performance when he set the tone for the USA team when he hit his Lakers teammate Pau Gasol on the chest. It was later on revealed that he was dead set on doing that because he wanted to send a message both to Spain and his teammates.
Bryant also hit clutch plays during the finals game to deliver the win for his country and redeem themselves for the 2004 failure.
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