Kobe Bryant: Defensive Doberman

The #8 Years.

I needed to put clips of Kobe playing man-to-man defense against some of the best perimeter players of his era. It wasn't easy to track these clips down since most videos focus on highlights (blocks/steals), and I'm thankful to any and all whose clips were featured in this video.

In any case, the focus of this video is on highlighting Kobe's prowess at excellent on-ball defense. Ball-pressure, active hands, close shot challenges etc. are a staple of his decorated Defensive Career (12x All-Defensive Team, 9x 1st Team Defense).

Included are clips in which players managed to score despite Kobe's defense. The results of those plays (particularly considering the caliber players he faced) do not interest me as much as Kobe's hounding defensive efforts. I tried to keep offensive highlights to a minimum, as well as what I believe is more basic types of defense. People focus on stat-sheet stuff like Blocks/Steals, which ultimately do not account for this kind of defense and the impact it can have on the game.

Kobe is one of the best perimeter defenders of all time for this reason: his on-ball defense is supreme by virtue of his quick feet/lateral agility, quick hands, long arms, strength, and most importantly, basketball IQ. Enjoy, and don't hesitate to pull this video when someone is acting ignorant about Kobe's defensive history.

Finally, the "Doberman" nickname was earned during the Olympic run in 2008, in case you're wondering. Cheers.

Disclaimer: I own none of these videos/clips/music. This mix is not meant to infringe upon anyone's copyrights. More specifically, this video is not/will not be used for any form of financial gains. It is purely for entertainment (educational) purposes.

Instrumentals (by order of appearance):

"Hit 'Em Up" - Tupac Shakur
"Going Back to Cali" - The Notorious B.I.G.
"Halftime" - NaS