"Ain't nothing wrong with that man's ankle" - Sam Perkins said Kobe Bryant was faking an injury in the 2000 NBA Finals originally appeared on Basketball Network .
In Game 2 of the 2000 NBA Finals, Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant severely injured his ankle after coming down on the foot of Indiana Pacers guard Jalen Rose.
He missed the entire game as his team crawled through a 111-104 victory. Though he wanted to suit up for Game 3, Lakers medical staff advised against it, and the Mamba sat on the bench as the Lakers suffered a 100-91 defeat.
Bryant miraculously laced up his sneakers and donned his Lakers jersey in Game 4 — which proved pivotal in the game's final minutes. In a battle for a rebound in overtime, Shaquille O'Neal got called for a loose-ball foul — his sixth. Lakers fans thought they were doomed without the "Big Fella."
But in a crazy turn of events, Kobe took over the game. The young "Mamba" knocked down a couple of perimeter shots in the final two minutes of the game. Critically, he also converted on the game-winning tip-in.
"This is the game I've been dreaming about, to be honest with you," Bryant said. "I dream about it every day."
After their heartbreaking 120-118 loss in Game 4, Pacers veteran power forward Sam Perkins sounded off on Bryant's return and his stellar performance. He believed the 21-year-old was faking an injury.
"Ain't nothing wrong with that man's ankle," Perkins said. "I've been trying to tell you that."
Perhaps Perkins was too stunned that Kobe suddenly rose from the ashes. Sam was probably envisioning an easy Game 4 victory that would've tied the series. Instead, his team was down 3-1.
Brushing off his disappointment and bitterness aside, Perkins praised the Lower Merion High School stud for playing the game of his life. The North Carolina alum recalled how, not too long ago, Kobe choked in the Western Conference Finals against the Utah Jazz . He evolved into a lethal clutch player since then.
"I think about Kobe and his progress from the time I can remember in Utah when he shot them out of the game," Perkins said. "Now he's a different individual. He's a competitor just like Michael."
In Kobe's book "The Mamba Mentality: How I Play," the five-time NBA Champion pulled the curtains behind his seemingly miraculous comeback from the ankle injury. Contrary to Sam's claims, Bryant was really hurt, but his training regimen hastened his recovery.
"My cardio workouts centered around recovery — that is, the time it takes to recover in between sprints. The reason I placed an acute focus on that element is because basketball dictates short bursts where you run as fast as you can, then have a moment to recover, then burst again. I wanted to make sure that I would always be ready for the next burst of action," Bryant wrote .
Kobe wasn't completely healed in Game 4. His movements were calculated and precise. On offense or defense, the "Mamba" made sure he had the edge over his matchup. He didn't want to be forced into a position that would further hurt his ankle.
"I had to, even on one ankle, keep the advantage in my court and never let the defense force me to do something I didn't want to do. That was the key here, and that's the key always," the Hall of Famer explained.
Bryant's epic Game 4 comeback in the 2000 NBA Finals wasn't a magic trick, nor did he fake it. Kobe was hurt, but his training, heart, and obsession with winning made it seem he was 100% healthy. That's what the Mamba Mentality is all about.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 6, 2025, where it first appeared.
