Did Luka Doncic Ever Play Against Kobe Bryant?

NBA fans might wonder if Luka Doncic ever played against the late Kobe Bryant. The Dallas Mavericks superstar might just be turning into one of the best scorers of this generation. He has carried the Mavs back into relevance and is only getting better each year.

Kobe Bryant is no longer with us and it has been almost three years since he passed away. It was a truly tragic helicopter crash that claimed the lives of him, his daughter, and a few others. Luka was quite devastated to find out about his passing. As some of us already know Kobe Bryant played in the NBA for a complete 20 seasons.

This is something that not many NBA players are capable of doing. Especially considering all the serious injuries that Kobe obtained throughout his career. In any case, let us take a look at whether Luka and Kobe ever faced off and what their relationship was like.

Kobe Bryant retired 2 years before Luka Doncic joined the NBA

Unfortunately for NBA fans, the age gap between Luka Doncic and Kobe Bryant was too great for them to play in the same league. When Bryant retired in 2016, Luka was only 16 years old and far too young to be eligible for the NBA. Therefore, they were never able to play against each other.

However, that does not mean they were unaccustomed to each other. In fact, Kobe even respected Luka Doncic and went to watch a few of his games in person. There was clearly a sense of mutual respect and admiration between these two basketball stars.

The numbers certainly prove that Luka is significantly better when compared to Kobe at this juncture in their careers. Kobe averaged 25.2 points, 5.5 assists, and 5.5 rebounds when he was 23 years old with the Los Angeles Lakers. At the same age this season, Doncic is averaging 34 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 8.7 assists.

Kobe managed to put up numbers like Luka only in his absolute prime as he averaged 35 points per game when he was 27 years old. It is quite saddening that we never got to see two generational talents have any form of overlap in a professional setting. It would have certainly been an amazing matchup for NBA fans to witness.