The words flowed out of Mitch Kupchak’s mouth perhaps as quickly as Kobe Bryant shot the ball in his career finale. Kupchak sounded as giddy as any of the 18,997 fans at Staples Center that witnessed Bryant scoring 60 points in a season-ending win over the Utah Jazz on Wednesday.
“I would put that night up against any Game 7, any championship in terms of performance,” Kupchak said, mindful of the atmosphere when the Lakers beat the Boston Celtics in the 2010 NBA Finals in seven games. “It certainly didn’t wipe away our record, but that was a special, special evening.