Pau Gasol pays tribute to Kobe Bryant by spotlighting 8-10-24 date as Team USA wins gold
Team USA brought home the gold medal in men’s basketball on Saturday night, in their classic win against France. Kobe Bryant was obviously one of the biggest superstars to ever play for Team USA basketball. Which made it quite the coincidence that USA hoops brought home gold on the date of 08-10-24, all numbers that he wore throughout his storied career.
8 and 24 were the numbers he wore for the LA Lakers. While he wore No. 10 for Team USA. On Saturday evening, Pau Gasol, one of the closest teammates with Bryant on the Lakers, decided to pay tribute to his old friend on social media.
One of the most famous teams in USA basketball history was dubbed “The Redeem Team”. The team was playing in the 2008 Olympics and the Americans had just won a disappointing bronze medal in 2004. The Redeem Team was absolutely loaded with talent: such stars as Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, and others.
Kobe Bryant’s legendary gold medal game performance vs. Spain
In the 2008 gold medal game against Spain, Kobe Bryant scored 13 of his 20 points in the final eight minutes of the contest. That game was a classic, and the superstar ensured that Team USA would not be denied. On the first play of the game, Bryant decided to set the tone early for the Americans by running through Gasol, who played for Spain.
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With 3:10 left in the game and USA up 104-99, Bryant unleashed a devastating dagger for the ages, a four-point play that saw him bring out the silencer for the hostile crowd in Beijing.
Bryant, nicknamed, “The Black Mamba” delivered a lethal dose of poison from which the Spaniards would not recover. Team USA would go on to defeat Spain in the contest 118-107, securing the gold medal for Bryant and his teammates.
In 2022, Netflix dropped a documentary on The Redeem Team, chronicling USA’s quest for the gold that year. Bryant was an instrumental part of that team’s success and played a massive role in turning around the fortunes of USA basketball internationally. While he was prolific with the Lakers throughout his career, his desire to turn around the fortunes of USA basketball internationally was a massive piece to their success in Beijing. And it was a critical turning point in the program, as the Americans have now won five straight gold medals.